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Vol.12 No. 5 June 1-7, 2019 80 Cents New York Edition Follow us on TheSouthAsianTimes.info

On visit to Japan, World leaders invited

Trump downplays
North Korea threat
President Trump is the first world leader to meet
Japanʼs new emperor, Naruhito. (Photo courtesy AP)
Tokyo: All the pomp and
pageantry in the world couldnʼt
paper over the tensions between
President Donald Trump and
Japanʼs Shinzo Abe on two of
their most pressing issues: North
Korea and trade.
The president and prime minis‑
ter tried mightily to minimize
their differences during Trumpʼs
four‑day state visit to Tokyo,
while playing up their close per‑
to Modi swearing-in
New Delhi: A host of global lead‑
ers, including Sri Lankan president 8 Allies & performers will be rewarded in Modi 2.0 Cabinet
and Nepalese Prime Minister,
along with several opposition lead‑
8 India's economy big worry for Modi, needs stimulus: FICCI
ers, chief ministers and governors
will attend Narendra Modi's
8 Pak seeks dialogue with India for region’s development
swearing‑in ceremony on May 30.
President Ram Nath Kovind will
administer the oath of office to
Modi and his cabinet members.
According to the ministry of
external affairs, president of
Bangladesh Abdul Hamid, presi‑
dent of Sri Lanka Maithripala
Sirisena, president of the Kyrgyz
Republic Sooronbay Jeenbekov,
President of Myanmar U Win
sonal friendship and their coun‑
Myint, prime minister of Mauritius
triesʼ long‑held ties. But tension
Pravind Kumar Jugnauth, prime
abounded, with Trump on
minister of Nepal KP Sharma Oli,
Monday brushing off the signifi‑
prime minister of Bhutan Lotay
cance of North Korean short‑
Tshering and special envoy of
range missile tests that have rat‑
Thailand Grisada Boonrach are the
tled Japan and reasserting his
leaders who have confirmed their
threats to hit Abe with potential‑
ly devastating auto import tar‑ Continued on page 4
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday arrived in Varanasi, his
iffs. Asked if he was bothered by
SEE MORE STORIES ON THE parliamentary constituency, to thank the people for electing him,
the missile tests, Trump said: AFTERMATH OF INDIAN and offered prayers along with BJP President Amti Shah
Continued on page 4 ELECTION ON PAGES 11‑15. at the Kashi Vishwanath temple. (Photo IANS)

Congress leaders go all out to persuade

Rahul Gandhi to stay as party chief
New Delhi: With Congress President Rahul
Gandhi remaining steadfast on quitting his
post in wake of the poll drubbing, hectic
activities were witnessed on Tuesday to tide
over the crisis amid questions over whether
there will be a structural overhaul, starting
from the top. Not only was the party in crisis
at the central level, but its state units in
Gujarat, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and
BJP victory celebrated on Long island : The Indian community of New York Karnataka also looked in a disarray and vul‑
held a BJP Victory Celebration in Hicksville on May 24 with over 300 in attendance. nerable to a collapse. Led by his sister
Speakers and organizers seen at the lamp lighting are: Nilima Madan, Dr Urmilesh Arya Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, a host of party lead‑ After the drubbing in polls, Rahul Gandhi
& Indu Jaiswal; (back row) Mohan Wanchoo, Dr. Raj Bhayani, K.L. Sardana, Dr Yashpal ers met the angry and sulking Congress remained adamant on quitting his post as
Arya, Animesh Goenka & Mukesh Modi. (See detailed story on page 3.) Continued on page 4 Congress President. (Photo courtesy PTI)

VOX POPULI 14-15 SPORTS 23 EDUCATION 26 SPIRITUAL AWARENESS 30 excellence in journalism

TheSouthAsianTimes.info June 1-7, 2019
TheSouthAsianTimes.info TRISTATE COMMUNITY June 1-7, 2019 3

Mega event in Long Island India Day Parade in Hicksville

to celebrate BJP victory to be held on August 4
Hicksville, NY: The Indian community of
New York held a BJP Victory Celebration
here on May 24. Over 300 leading members
of the community joined the mega celebra‑
tion of the landslide victory of BJP party in
the recent 2019 elections in India.
The speakers and organizers were Nilima
Madan, National General Secretary of
Overseas Friends of BJP, businessman K.L.
Sardana and family, gastroenterologist Dr
Yashpal Arya, President/CEO at EC
Infosystems Inc. Mohan Wanchoo, Animesh
Goenka of Steelbro International, Addiction
Medicine expert Dr CB Singh, Yash Imports
owner and IDP Advisor Mukesh Modi, and
otolaryngologist Dr. Raj Bhayani who was
also Chairman AAPI Manhattan.
Mohan Wanchoo compiled a snap shot
with videos of actual footage from India
related to the 2019 elections that summa‑
rized the sentiment and jubilant celebra‑
tions about Narendra Modi's re‑election and
shared messages from leaders like Nitin
Gadkari in India. The presentation elicited
chants of Modi, Modi! The panelists gave
brief speeches giving some insight about the
Modi, the BJP and Indiaʼs past, present and
future. ʻSabka Saath Sabka Vikasʼ is the pri‑
mary message from the BJP.
Among the attendees were top‑notch
physicians including Padma Shri Dr
Dattatreya Nori, Dr Shashi Shah, Dr Om &
Usha Bansal, Dr Ajay Lodha, Dr Budhadev
Manvar, Dr Dolly Manvar, Dr Raj Modi, Dr
Bhavani Srinivasan, Dr Krishna Zaveri, Dr
Harry Shukla, Dr Narinder Kukar, Dr Jagdish
Gupta, Dr Bal Gilja and Dr Geeta Anand.
OFBJP's Past Organizing Secretary Rajendra
P Singh and NEC Member Bhushan Tadepalli
along with the nephew of Home Minister
Rajnath Singh, Mr Pradeep Singh, also
joined in.
Prominent Indian Americans and commu‑
nity leaders such as Kamlesh Mehta,
Chairman of The South Asian Times, Ravi
Bhooplapur, President of Xavier University
School of Medicine, Ajoy Joshi,
(from right) Bollywood star Shamita Shetty, parade advisor Mukesh Modi,
President/CEO of Spirit Pharmaceuticals,
IDP USA President Jasbir Jay Singh, and other IDP officials
also graced the event.
Many Presidents of Indian American asso‑ Mineola, NY: IDP USA held the curtain raiser The Nassau County legislator Richard
ciations like Dr Urmilesh Arya, Harish on May 23rd for the annual India Day Nicollelo spoke about the Indian American
Thakkar, Jasbir Jay Singh, Lalit Aery, Pinky Parade of Long Island – which was first community. Nassau County Legislators
Jaggi and Jyoti Gupta, Gobind Munjal, Smiti organized in 2012 ‑‑ to be held in Hicksville, Laura Schef fer and Joshua Lafazan gave
Khanna, Sunil Modi and Gunjan Rastogi NY on August 4. The route of the parade is proclamations to Shamita Shetty.
were present and along with noteworthy from Patel Brothers to Town Parking oppo‑ Dr. Urmilesh Arya, President of AIA‑
attendees like Gobind and Arjen Batheja, site Asa Mai Mandir in Hicksville. National, Naveen Shah of Navika, Harry Bolla
Mohinder Taneja, Rakesh Bhargava, Kanak The curtain raiser was held at Theodore of Bolla Oil, Amandeep Singh (Tony) of Food
Golia, Vibhuti Jha, ASshok Vyas, Varidner Roosevelt Executive and Legislative Building, Universe and Sanjay Patel of Patel Brothers
Bhalla, Vimal Goel, Amba Sharma, Rekha in Mineola by TEAM IDP USA under the lead‑ were also honored with citations from law‑
Chichera, Gautam Sanghvi, Indu Jaiswal, ership of President Jasbir Jay Singh. The makers. Kamlesh Mehta, founder IDP, and
Lalit and Shashi Malik, Anu Jain and Sunita Guest of Honor Shamita Shetty, a Bollywood other IDP Past Presidents Indu Jaiswal,
Manjrekar. star. Mohinder Taneja, Peter Bheddah and Beena
The Gala Victory event was much appreci‑ Human Rights Commissioner Zahid Syed Kothari shared memories of past parades and
ated and fully enjoyed by all. Many contin‑ did the opening and introduced the Advisor promised their support to Jay Singh and his
ued to dance and celebrate late into the of Parade Mukesh Modi, who partnered with team. Founder Bobby K. Kalotee was on live
evening. A few ladies wore Modi sarees. Vice President of IDP, Bina Sabapathy, as MC. call from out of town.

BJP supporters organize Sunil Gulati voted into

victory parties across US
Houston: Indian‑American sup‑
porters of BJP and several other
organisations held victory par‑
ties across the US to celebrate
Prime Minister Narendra Modi's
re‑election in the general elec‑
tions and expressed hope that it
w i l l f u r t h e r e nh a n c e t i e s
between the US and India.
Overseas friends of BJP
( O F B J P ) H o u s t o n o r g a n i z ed
"NAMO Victory Celebrations" in
Houston in which over 500 peo‑
ple, including members from
local political parties and lead‑
ers from various support ing
organizations participated.
OFBJP Chicago and Atlanta
also organized victory celebra‑
tions over the Memorial Day
w ee k e n d a n d h u n d r ed s o f
Indian Americans participated.
Congratulating Prime Minister
OFBJP celebration in Houston on May 27.
Modi on his stunning election
victory, Indo American Chamber
of Greater Houston (IACCGH)
president Swapan Dhairyawan
said, "We firmly believe that the
country will prosper under a
strong and proven leadership of
Modi and indicated that this his‑
toric win will further enhance
t r a d e a n d ec o n o m i c g r o w t h
between our two democracies".
Texas Governor Greg Abbott,
in a message to Indian
Ambassador to the US Harsh
Vardhan Shringla, said that he
viewed Modi's election as "very
important to the future of
India."
US Soccer Hall Of Fame
Harrison, N.J.: Former U.S.
Soccer Federation presi‑
dent Sunil Gulati has been
chosen for the U.S.
National Soccer Hall of
Fame.
The Indian American will
be inducted Sept. 21 at the
new hall building in Frisco,
Texas.
The 59‑year‑old Gulati
was president of the USSF
from 2006 until last year
and was e lected in the
builder category. A mem‑
ber of the FIFA Council, he Former U.S. Soccer Federation
was a major figure in the president Sunil Gulati
return of the U.S. to the
World Cup in 1990 following a The first Indian‑American to
40‑year absence, the local organ‑ hold the position of president of
izing committee that hosted the the U.S. Soccer Federation, Gulati
1994 World Cup and the launch was succeeded by another Indian‑
of Major League Soccer in 1996. American, Carlos Cordiero.
 4 June 1-7, 2019 TURN PAGE TheSouthAsianTimes.info

World leaders invited to only way for South Asia's development. he is willing to do whatever he can to
US 'very pleased' Modi swearing‑in Downplaying the lack of invite, Pak
Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood
help to reduce tensions between the U.S.
and Iran.
Continued from page 1
to see return of attendance. Invitations have also been
sent to all prominent opposition leaders,
Qureshi told Geo News on Monday:
"Finding a new way (to resume dialogue)
Trump also said his only aim is to pre‑
vent the country from obtaining nuclear

strong govt in India chief ministers and governors for the

New Delhi: The US is "very pleased" to see a strong gov‑
ernment return to power in India as both nations look to
boost bilateral trade amid a growing security partner‑
ship, a senior US official said here on Monday.
"Our President (Donald Trump) has expressed his
strong desire for continued strength in the US and India
relations across the board. So, it is an opportunity for us
to continue what already is a very excellent relationship,"
said David Kennedy, Minister Counsellor for Public
Affairs, US Embassy in India. Besides, he said both the US
and India would like to see their annual bilateral trade of
over $120 billion grow higher and view it as a "fantastic
opportunity". "I think our broader security relationship is
strong and growing and that will continue to grow in
many ways with shared common interest and common
values, as we are two large democracies. I am confident
we will continue that very healthy relationship growing
forward," Kennedy said. The total bilateral trade, both
goods and services, of the US with India stood at $126
billion in 2017, up 10.4 per cent from $114.2 billion
level in 2016. Bilateral trade witnessed an average 5.6
per cent annual growth rate for the previous five years,
according to the US‑India Strategic Partnership Forum.
ceremony. Pak Prime Minsiter Imran
Khan has NOT been invited.
The opposition leaders who have been
invited include Congress President Rahul
Gandhi, Trinamool Congress chief and
West Bengal chief minister Mamata
Banerjee, and Delhi chief minister Arvind
Kejriwal. As for Modiʼs council of minis‑
ters, several names for prominent min‑
istries are doing the rounds in the capi‑
tal. BJP President Amit Shah might get a
heavyweight Cabinet berth. It is also
being said that Piyush Goyal, who held
the finance portfolio when Arun Jaitley
was unwell, is a candidate for this key
portfolio.
BJPʼs allies and performers will also be
rewarded. The architect of Bengal's vic‑
tory Mukul Roy, once Trinamool strong
man who defected to the BJP, is a shoo‑
in for a cabinet position. Nitish Kumarʼs
JD‑U, which turned in a stellar position
in Bihar, may well be rewarded with the
Railways Ministry. For the third con‑
stituent of NDA, Lok Janshakti Party, it is
clear that Ram Vilas Paswan will return
is also essential for them (India). If he
(Modi) wants development of this
region... the only way is to sit with
Pakistan to find a solution. It is in the
interest of Pakistan to defuse tensions...
Pakistan did not create tensions."
On visit to Japan,
Trump downplays
North Korea threat
Continued from page 1
“No, Iʼm not. I am personally not.” Abe, in
contrast, said the missile tests were “of
great regret.”
Trump also sided with Kim on the
question of whether the short‑term mis‑
sile launches violated U.N. Security
Council resolutions, as both Abe and
Trumpʼs own national security adviser,
John Bolton, had stated.
“My people think it could have been a
violation,” said Trump. “I view it differ‑
ently. I view it as a man ̶ perhaps he
wants to get attention and perhaps not.
Who knows?”
Japan has long voiced concern about
short‑range missiles because of the
weapons.
“Weʼre not looking for regime change,”
he said. “I just want to make that clear.
Weʼre looking for no nuclear weapons.”
Trump was invited to Japan to be the
first world leader to meet the countryʼs
new emperor. Trumpʼs meeting with
Emperor Naruhito and his wife, Empress
Masako, was preceded by a grand out‑
door welcome ceremony at Japanʼs
Imperial Palace, where Trump walked
solo across red carpets, reviewing
Japanese troops as the guest of honor.
Congress leaders go all out
to persuade Rahul to stay
as party chief
Continued from page 1
President at his residence through the
day and Gandhi is believed to have con‑
veyed to them that he could at best lead
the party in Parliament.
He is believed to have conveyed to the
party leaders that he was "not running
away" but wanted that someone else
should lead the Congress, not necessari‑
ly from his family.

No decision on to the Modi Cabinet 2.0. Shiv Sena will

also get a representation. Harsimrat
threat they pose to its security. Kimʼs
decision to lift the pause in ballistic mis‑
As he stayed firm on quitting, sugges‑
tions poured in noisily from other mem‑

Modi bilateral with Kaur Badal is expected to represent the

Akali Dal.
sile launches that began in late 2017
alarmed North Koreaʼs neighbors.
bers that he should not do so but
appoint a working president or a vice‑
Most analysts believe the missiles president to look after day‑to‑day func‑
Imran at SCO meet As for Modi governmentʼs priorities,
top industrial body FICCI has said that were ballistic missiles, which are not
allowed under U.N. resolutions.
tioning.
Congress leaders said that if he had
Indiaʼs slowing economic growth is of
New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Trumpʼs visit to Japan was designed to agreed to withdraw his resignation,
serious concern and the country needs
Pakistan's Imran Khan will attend the Shanghai highlight the U.S.‑Japan alliance and there was scope for further discussion
to urgently cut tax and interest rates to
Cooperat ion Org anisat ion (SCO) meet ing in showcase the warm relations between but because of his response there is no
revive the economy. The economy grew
Kyrgyztan mid‑June, but no decision has been taken the two leaders. Trump said he and Abe further progress on the matter.
6.6% in the three months to December ‑
by New Delhi on any meeting between the two lead‑ deliberated over trade, Iran and more Besides Priyanka, who stayed with her
the slowest pace in five quarters and the
ers. If the two prime ministers do meet, however, during hours of talks at Akasaka Palace. brother for most of the day, those who
bigger worry was that domestic con‑
India will convey the same red lines of terror to Despite their differences, Trump and met Gandhi included party general sec‑
sumption was not growing fast enough
Pakistan, Times of India reported. Abe pledged to work closer together as retary KC Venugopal, Rajasthan Deputy
to offset a weakening global economic
Over the last few years, India has refused any initia‑ they attend to North Korea and move Chief Minister Sachin Pilot and Congress
environment. “This is a matter of serious
tive for talks, contending that cross‑border terror has forward with trade talks. chief spokesperson Randeep Singh
concern and if not addressed urgently,
to stop before talks can begin. Earlier Monday, Trump said he backed Surjewala.
the repercussions would be long term,”
Imran Khan had earlier called PM Modi to congrat‑ Abeʼs interest in leveraging his countryʼs With Gandhi remaining adamant, a
FICCI said.
ulate him on his landslide victory in the Lok Sabha good relations with Iran to help broker a presidium system to govern the party is
Not invited for Modiʼs inauguration,
e lect ions. Mo di thanked him for his call and possible dialogue between the U.S. and being considered, wherein a group of
Pakistan has sought a dialogue with the
greetings. its adversary in the Middle East. Abe said senior leaders will run the show.
new Indian government, saying it is the

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TheSouthAsianTimes.info TRISTATE COMMUNITY June 1-7, 2019 5

Dr. Nimisha Shukla is running Trump administration

for Edison Town Council advances process to scrap work
Edison, NJ: Among the candidates vying for their music, and culture.
partyʼs endorsement in this yearʼs Democratic Dr. Shukla is beholden to no special interests
permit for H4 visa holders
Primary for Edison Town Council, one is unique in Edison Township. She is concerned with the Washington, DC: The Trump administra‑ The H‐4 visas are given to
– Dr. Nimisha Shukla. A 25‑year resident of the same issues that disturb many residents – rising tion has moved to the next step on the
Department of Homeland Security's (DHS)
immediate family members of
township, Nimisha has led a property taxes, crumbling
life of service to her communi‑ roads and infrastructure, proposal to ban the practice of granting H‐1B visa holders, which
ty as a pediatrician, entrepre‑ poorly planned development, work permits to H‑4 visa holders, mostly include spouses and children
neur, and philanthropist. She and a general decline in the spouses of H‑1B visa holders. On May 22,
the US government issued a notice to kick‑
below 21 years of age. The work
was encouraged to run by overall quality‑of‑life experi‑
Mayor Thomas Lankey and enced by many residents of off public consultations for the proposed permits for such visa holders
will provide an independent the community. rule. has benefitted over 1 lakh
voice and fresh ideas to She believes that variable More than 1 lakh Indian immigrants
working in the US would be staring at job
Indian immigrants since 2015.
resolving the challenges fac‑ costs within the community
ing the community. can be contained through loss in the near future, if this four‑year‑old people will have 30 or 60 days to post
Dr. Shuklaʼs views have enhanced budgetary due dili‑ rule is scrapped. The H‑4 visas are given comments, following which the regulation
been shaped by her life expe‑ gence and that additional to immediate family members of H‑1B visa will be made final," Rajiv S. Khanna, man‑
riences. Traversing three con‑ funds can be secured through holders, which include spouses and chil‑ aging attorney at immigration law firm
tinents in pursuit of her pro‑ identification and proper dren below 21 years of age. Work permits Immigration.com, told the Economic
fessional development, she application for municipal aid for certain categories of H‑4 visa holders Times. The administration is obligated to
ultimately immigrated to the and economic development were issued under an executive order by comment before publishing and imple‑
Dr. Nimisha Shukla is a the previous Obama administration in menting the final rule, a process that could
US where she he ld distin‑ funding from the State of New
pediatrician, entrepreneur, 2015 in a bid to address the skill shortage
guished teaching and leader‑ Jersey and Middlesex County. take as much as a year, he added. The
and philanthropist. The
ship positions at Michigan Democrat Primary is on June 4. The funding produced by sav‑ in the technology domain. Trump administration, already well‑known
State University and at SUNY ings and grant awards can Before that, spouses could not be for its hard‑line anti‑immigration stance,
Downstate Medical Center College of Medicine then be earmarked for property tax relief and employed while H‑1B visa holders sought moved to scrap this program in February
in Brooklyn. Settling in Edison, she raised twin various quality‑of‑life initiatives – among them, out permanent resident status‑a process last year. Then, in October, the DHS
daughters and went on to form 7 Days preservation of open space, repair of roads and that can take a decade or longer. Indians, claimed in its Unified Fall Agenda that
Pediatrics, an innovative, multi‑facility primary infrastructure, and protection of families and largely female engineers, have reportedly "Some US workers would benefit from
care practice that she currently operates. neighborhoods. been the biggest beneficiaries of the H4 this proposed rule by having a better
Together with her husband, she ventured into Through enforced fiscal responsibility and EAD (Employment Authorisation chance at obtaining jobs that some of the
what would today be considered e‑commerce – renewed energy in identification of funding Document) visa program, taking over 90% population of the H‑4 workers currently
enabling Indian‑Americans to af fordably con‑ opportunities from state and county sources as of the 1.2 lakh visas issued since 2015. hold, as the proposed rule would no longer
nect with friends and relatives in India. Her we ll as municipal‑business partnerships, However, even if this proposal goes allow H‑4 workers to enter the labor mar‑
Indian heritage also led her into the world of Nimisha believes that the Township of Edison through, it would take a while for it to take ket early." Hence, this proposed rule is
broadcast communications, as she purchased can solidify its financial footing and remain a effect. "The process is currently at the sec‑ clearly aligned with US President Donald
WWRL 1600‑AM where she transformed a 90‑ desirable place to live and work for its residents ond last stage. Once it is approved here, it Trump's Buy American and Hire American
year‑old station into a hub for South Asian talk, and businesses for years to come. will be posted in the federal register and executive order.

New Asian American Employee survey

shows lower satisfaction
New York: Results from Asia
Societyʼs 2019 Asian Corporate
Survey, which examines the per‑
ceptions and lived realities of
Asian Pacific American (APA)
employees in the U.S. workplace,
show a slight but steady decrease
over the last two years in Asian
and APA employee satisfaction
with professional growth opportu‑
nities at their companies, while
some companies have notably
made progress in their workplace
diversity practices and initiatives.
Published by Asia Society, the
Executive Summary from Asia
So cietyʼs tenth annual Asian
Corporate Survey analyzes how
APA employees in the United
States evaluate the performance of
their companies across five key
dimensions: Diversity, Professional
Growth, Employee Resource
Groups, Workplace and Work‑Life
Insights, and Overall Satisfaction
and Belonging.
More than 2,500 employees par‑
ticipated in the survey, which
included over 500 non‑APA
employees in order to provide
greater context for comparison
and benchmarking in how they
viewed their companies. Almost 70
percent of APA survey respondents
identified themselves as first gen‑
eration. Close to half of the respon‑
dents are in technical roles, while
3.4 percent are on the chief execu‑
tive level.
Two main findings from this
report: Job Sat isfact ion ‑ T he
decrease in job satisfaction, while
not precipitous, is still notable as
APA employee favorability was
trending upwards prior to 2017 in
the four‑year study. Many APA
respondents, in significant con‑
trast to their non‑APA counter‑
parts, noted a shortage of compa‑
ny executives and directors from
their cultural background and a
lack of leadership development
opportunities for them.
Sense of Belonging ‑ APA respon‑
dents also cited that they did not
feel a strong sense of belonging in
the workplace, sometimes due to
differences between their personal
upbringings and American work
culture.
For example, one APA survey
respondent cited cultural dif fer‑
ences in communication styles,
noting“our traditional culture of
being humble, reserved, and a
team player when practiced in a
professional setting tends to be
misunderstood for being timid,
quiet, and lacking in leadership.”
T he report also hig hlig hts
employers who were previously
announced as the winners in Asia
Societyʼs 2019 Best Companies for
Asian Pacific Americans for their
noteworthy ef forts in developing
and promoting APA talent.
Discover, named Overall Best
Employer by Asia Society this year,
for instance runs a company‑wide
Chinese dragon boat race to help
educate their employees on its cul‑
tural significance. Goldman Sachs,
also an award‑winner this year,
manages a “Presentation Skills
Boot Camp” for their firm‑wide
Asian Professionals Network to
help APA employees enhance their
presentation skills.
The gender representation in
this survey was approximately
equal between women and men,
with 0.1 percent identifying as
transgender. Almost half of the
respondents were Gen X (born
between 1965‑1981) which may
explain the cultural mismatch, fol‑
lowed with millennials (born in
1982‑2000), and baby boomers
(born in 1946‑1964). Almost 60
percent of them have been with
their employer for more than five
years.
 6 June 1-7, 2019 TRISTATE TheSouthAsianTimes.info

Indian sculptor to display IHCNJ annual health fair

art collection at The Met
New York: The Metropolitan
Museum of Art, the largest art
museum in the US, will show‑
case a collection of works by
renowned Indian sculptor
Mrinalini Mukherjee in the first
comprehensive display of the
artist's work in America.
The artist will be the subject
of a revelatory retrospective at
The Met Breuer.
The exhibition ''Phenomenal
Nature: Mrinalini Mukherjee''
will be on view June 4 through
September 29, 2019, bringing
together 57 pieces by
Mukherjee and will explore the
artist's longstanding engage‑
ment with fiber, along with her
significant forays into ceramic
and bronze from the middle
and latter half of her career, the
Museum said.
The exhibition is made possi‑
ble by Nita Ambani, her hus‑
band Re liance Industries
Chairman Mukesh Ambani and
the Reliance Foundation.
Born in Mumbai in 1949,
Mukherjee studied painting,
printmaking, and mural making
at the M S University in Baroda,
with the influential artist K G
Subramanyan, under whose
guidance Mukherjee first exper‑
imented w ith fiber.
Phenomenal Nature will also
Mrinalini Mukherjee (Image courtesy: ndtv.com)
present the latter half of
Mukherjee's career in the mid‑
1990s, when, prompted by a
residency at the European
Ceramics Work Centre in the
Netherlands, she began work‑
ing with ceramics, eventually
taking on bronze in 2003.
"Probing the divide between
figurat ion and abstract ion,
Mukherjee would go on to fash‑
ion unusual, mysterious, sensu‑
al, and, at times, unsettlingly
grotesque forms, commanding
in their presence and scale," the
museum said.
A committed sculptor who
worked intuit ive ly, never
resort ing to a sketch or
preparatory draw ing,
Mukherjee in her forms
explored the divide between
figuration and abstraction.
She was primarily inspired by
nature and this was further
informed by her enthusiasm for
Indian historic sculpture, mod‑
ern design, and local crafts and
textile traditions. The exhibi‑
tion will seek to highlight the
radical intervention Mukherjee
made by adapting crafting tech‑
niques with a modernist for‑
malism.
The exhibition is organized
by Shanay Jhaveri, Assistant
Curator of South Asian Art in
the museum's Department of
Modern and Contemporary Art.
(PTI)
at Bridgewater Sri Venkateswara
Temple on June 16
New Jersey: On Sunday, June 16,
2019, from 8:30 a.m. to 1 p.m., a
health screening and disease aware‑
ness and prevention fair will be held
at Sri Venkateswara (Balaji) Temple
in Bridgewater, NJ. The health fair
will be organized by the Indian
Health Camp of New Jersey in collab‑
oration with Balaji Temple. Indian
Health Camp of New Jersey – IHCNJ,
a non‑profit organization under tax‑
exempt code 501© (3) will hold this
annual fair for the 20th year at this
location to benefit needy people in
the community.
The health fair will be open to all
participants who are pre‑registered
without any medical insurance or
people who are underinsured with
high deductible to receive preventive
screening, education and counseling
on medical, dental and mental health
disorders. T he comprehensive
health screening will include blood
test, EKG, vision screening for glauco‑
ma and diabetic retinopathy, physical
examination, cardiology and physical
therapy and rheumatology counsel‑
ing, various types of cancer and
chronic diseases screening for dia‑
betes, hypertension, cardiovascular
disorders and mental health disor‑
ders. The physicians, mental health
providers and other allied health care
professionals from various specialties
of internal medicine, cardiology, oph‑
thalmology, physical therapy, phle‑
botomists, EKG techs, medical assis‑
tants, nurses, social workers and
medical students will provide their
services to screen and educate
patients on various chronic diseases
to needy people in the community.
The mental health education and
counseling will be provided by men‑
tal health experts from SAMHIN to
recognize and treat depression,
stress, anxiety and many other disor‑
ders which are common but not dis‑
cussed in South Asians due to social
taboo, disbelief and denial. Indian
Health Camp of NJ and their dedicat‑
ed committee members and volun‑
teers will provide their selfless and
dedicated service to support the
health fair activities on this day.
LabCorp will provide basic blood test
services for this fair at a minimal
charge to IHCNJ.
To date, IHCNJ provided screening
to more than 10,000 needy people in
South Asian communities throughout
New Jersey since its inception in
1998. IHCNJ will provide follow‑up
consultations and additional testing
to participants with critical and
severely abnormal test during the
health screening as part of their new
objectives in 2019. For further infor‑
mation about IHCNJ activities, visit
www.IHCNJ.org or contact Dr. Tushar
Pate l via e‑mail
tpatel434@yahoo.com or call 848‑
391‑0499.

Chhandayan presents 20th all-night

concert of Indian classical music
New York:
Chhandayan Center
for Indian Music, a
25‑year‑old NYC
based organization
presented the 20th
and final All‑Night
Concert of Indian
Samir Chatterjee, Ayan Sinha, Pt. Jasraj, Ratan Mohan Sharma, and
Classical Music May
Tripti Mukherjee at the All‑Night Concert of Indian Classical Music
18. Held at the New
May 18, presented by Chhandayan Center for Indian Music in New
The Association of Kerala Medical Graduates, New York hosted a kick‑off meeting York Society for York City at the New York Society for Ethical Culture.
for their Ruby Convention, at the Consulate on 21st May 2019. The meeting was Ethical Culture, the
well attended by leaders from the FOKANA, FOMAA, IAPC and other organizations concert began at 8pm on the 18th and conclud‑ event for lovers of Indian classical music not
along with the members from the medical fraternity in the Tristate of ed at 6:15 am on the 19th. The all‑night concert just in the Tristate area, but from North
NY/NJ/Connecticut. PadmaSri Dr. Sudhir Parikh was the Chief Guest and keynote featured some of the most notable performers America and other parts of the world, who spe‑
speaker while Consul (Community Affairs) represented the Consulate and gave
of this music tradition including Pandit Jasraj cially traveled to attend this festival, said a
the inaugural speech. President of AKMG Dr. Thomas P. Mathew and Convention
(Vocal), Vidushi Shruti Sadolikar‑Katkar (Vocal), press release from the Consulate of India in
Convenors Dr. Alex Mathew, Dr. Nisha Pillai, Dr. Unnikrishnan Thampy and
Pandit Shubhendra Rao (Sitar), Vidushi Saskia New York.
Dr. Thampy gave speeches with regard to the activities of AKMG.
Rao‑De Haas (Cello), Pandit Debasish For the past few years people were also able
Bhattacharya (Guitar), Pandit Samir Chatterjee to watch the performances from the comfort of

Yoga: A journey to the inside! (Tabla). It also featured a unique tabla sympho‑ their homes through live streaming services. “It
ny performance titled ʻTablaphiliaʼ based on the was a bittersweet moment for audience mem‑
theme of chaturashram, composed and conduct‑ bers as they left the auditorium. On one hand it

A
ll Yoga enthusiasts are welcome to
celebrate the International Day of
Yog a on June 23, 2019 at Fair
Bridge Hote l & Convent ion Center,
Somerset, NJ. The event is hosted by the
Consulate General of India, NY in partner‑
ship with Friends of Yoga. The Keynote
speaker will be Gaur Gopal Das, Personal
Coach, Monk, Lifestyle & Motivational
Strategist This event is free of cost and all
are welcome to attend.
Invite your friends & family to experience
Yoga for Free. Register: https://
www.indiainnewyork.gov.in/yogaday/
ed by Samir Chatterjee. was the most befitting finale to a 19‑year lega‑
Sandeep Chakravorty, Consul General of India cy, and on the other hand, the realization that
in New York, spoke on the occasion highlight‑ there will not be another like it carried a sense
ing the singular contribution of Chhandayan of sadness as well,” said the press release. The
and of Samir Chatterjee in popularizing classical Indian Council of Cultural Relations (ICCR), the
music of India in the U.S. Indian Consulate in NY and the New York State
The All‑Night Concert has been a cornerstone Council on the Arts supported the Festival.
TheSouthAsianTimes.info
Scientist Gaurav Sharma
to help US soldiers control
robots using thoughts
Washington: An Indian‑origin scientist
and his team in the US have won a whop‑
ping $ 20 million contract from an agency
of the defence department to develop a
system that could allow a soldier to con‑
trol multiple unmanned aerial vehicles or
even a bomb disposal robot with his
thoughts.
The team headed by Gaurav Sharma, a
senior research scientist at Battelle, is
among six teams to win grants to develop
brain‑machine interfaces, according to a
statement by the De fence Advanced
Research Projects Agency (DARPA).
Sharma, 40, has been tasked to develop
a system that could ultimately allow a sol‑
dier to put on a helmet and use his mind
to control multiple unmanned aerial vehi‑
cles or even a bomb disposal robot,
Battelle, a Columbus‑based R&D organiza‑
tion, said in a statement.
Battelle's Next‑Generation Nonsurgical
Neurotechnology (N3) program for a mini‑
mally invasive neural interface system,
has been named ''BrainSTORMS'' (Brain
System to Transmit Or Receive
Magnetoelectric Signals).
BrainSTORMS involves the development
of a novel nano‑transducer that could be
temporarily introduced into the body via
injection and then directed to a specific
area of the brain to help complete a task
through communication with a helmet‑
based transceiver, the statement said.
Upon completion, the nano‑transducer
will be magnetically guided out of the
brain and into the bloodstream to be
processed out of the body, it said. "This is
one of the most exciting and challenging
projects I have worked on," said Sharma.
"With BrainSTORMS, we will again be
pushing the limits eng ineering and
physics. If successful, this technology
Hate crime convict ordered
to learn about Sikhism
as part of sentence
New York: A US judge has ordered a
white man, who admitted to attacking a
Sikh store owner because of his religion,
to learn more about the faith and submit
a report in the court as part of his sen‑
tence for committing the hate crime.
Marion County Judge Lindsay Partridge
also sentenced 25‑year‑old Andrew
Ramsey to three years of imprisonment,
according to a press release issued by the
Sikh Coalition, the largest Sikh body in
the US. On January 14, Ramsey brutally
assaulted Harwinder Singh Dodd, who
was working at a convenience store in
the state of Oregon, because of his per‑
ception of his religion.
Ramsey wanted rolling papers for ciga‑
rettes but did not have an ID and the
clerk would not sell them to him without
NATIONAL June 1-7, 2019 7
A team headed by Sharma, a senior
research scientist at Battelle has won grant
to develop brain‑machine interface.
(Image courtesy: ndtv.com)
would not only provide a safe and ef fi‑
cient way to facilitate human‑machine
interactions but also has the potential to
revolutionize the study of the nervous sys‑
tem," Sharma said.
Battelle began the first phase of the pro‑
gram with $ 2 million in funding to
demonstrate the core concept of the tech‑
nology. If the team''s concept proves suc‑
cessful, Battelle will receive additional
funding for the second and third phases of
the program, the statement said.
The full contract is worth approximately
$ 20 million over four years for the
Battelle team. Sharma, was instrumental
in the development of a neuroprosthetic
technology named NeuroLife which has
enabled a quadriplegic man to move his
hand again using his thoughts. Battelle
has for years successfully demonstrated
brain‑computer interface (BCI) projects.
(PTI)
the document, as required by law. When
Dodd asked Ramsey to leave, he attacked
him by pulling his beard, punching him in
the face, pulling him to the ground and
kicking him.
Ramsey also spat on Dodd and ripped
his turban off his head, the press release
said.
T he man pleaded guilty in Marion
County Circuit Court to second‑degree
intimidation, a hate crime under Oregon
law.
Sentencing Ramsey to 36 months in
jail, the judge ordered him to attend the
local temple's annual parade to learn
more about the Sikh religion, saying big‑
otry is the result of ignorance and "all of
us are able to learn and benefit from cul‑
tures in our community."
 8 June 1-7, 2019 NATIONAL COMMUNITY TheSouthAsianTimes.info

Spotlight on the Spelling Congressional Asian Pacific American

Bee competitors, mainly
Indian Americans T
By SATimes Team
Caucus celebrates 25 years
about 1 percent of the United States popu‑
lation, their American‑born children are
he Cong ressional Asian Pacific communities. I commend Rep. Chu and
American Caucus May 16 celebrated CAPACʼs officers past and present for their
25 years of leadership with mem‑ leadership and I look forward to our contin‑
bers of Congress chiming in on the caucusʼ ued work for years to come,” Harris, a 2020

A
quarter century achievement. Indian Democratic presidential candidate, added.
t first glance, Generation Z (youth overrepresented in the National Spelling American CAPAC members including U.S. Khanna, D‑Calif., representing the 17th
born after 1997) Bee finals ̶ and in the Sen. Kamala Harris and U.S. Rep. Ro Congressional District, is among the CAPAC
seems to be made up bookʼs profiles. Like other Khanna released statements to celebrate Executive Board members.
of anxious overachievers, immigrant parents, Indian this historic milestone. He noted, “For 25 years, CAPAC has been
hounded by Tiger Moms and families highly value educa‑ “I am proud to join my colleagues in com‑ the voice for members of Asian and Pacific
constantly tracked on social tion, but they have an addi‑ memorating the 25th anniversary of the Islander descent in Congress. CAPAC pro‑
media. One would think that t ional advantage: An Congressional Asian Pacific American vides the support to expand equality, toler‑
competitors in the National astounding 77 percent of Caucus. Since its founding 25 years ago, ance and prosperity for the AAPI communi‑
Spelling Bee ‑‑ the most pop‑ adult Indian immigrants in CAPAC has worked to ensure that the voic‑ ty. I am proud of all we have accomplished
ular brain sport in America ‑‑ 2015 had a bache lorʼs es of AAPI communities across the nation thus far.” The bi‑cameral Caucus was estab‑
would be the worst of f. degree or higher (compared are heard in Congress,” Harris said in a lished on May 14, 1994 by Secretary
Counterintuitively, anthro‑ with 29 percent of all immi‑ statement. Norman Y. Mineta to ensure that federal
polog ist Shalini Shankar grants and 31 percent of “From pushing for immigration reform to legislation and policies reflect the needs of
argues that, far from being nat ive‑born adults). T he advocating for access to affordable health the Asian American and Pacific Islander
simply overstressed and Indian‑born Bee parents in care, to creating an economy that works for community. The 116th Congress includes a
overscheduled, Gen Z the book are virtually all all Americans, CAPAC has long been at the record 20 Asian American and Pacific
spelling bee competitors are In ʻBEELINE: What Spelling professionals w ith the forefront on key issues that are important Islander members of Congress and 73
learning crucial twenty‑first‑ Bees Reveal About know‑how and financial to Asian American and Pacific Islander CAPAC members total.
century skills from their Generation Zʼs New Path to resources (some of them
high‑powered lives, display‑ Successʼ, Shalini Shankar, stay‑at‑home mothers) to
ing a sophisticated under‑ an anthropologist, uses help prepare their children Indian charged with transporting
standing of self‑promotion, spelling bees as a lens to for these intense competi‑
se lf‑direction, and social examine the unique tions. illegal immigrants from Canada
mobility. Drawing on origi‑ and diverse traits of T here are even two New York: An Indian has been charged with Thursday. The helicopter spotted several
nal ethnographic research, Generation Z‑‑and why minor‑league spelling bees allegedly transporting illegal immigrants people crossing the St Lawrence River into
including interviews with they are destined for for kids of South Asian her‑ who crossed from Canada to the US, accord‑ the US and entering a vehicle, according to
success. The finals of the itage that are often a
participants, judges, and ing to officials. Jawant Singh, 30, who was court documents. The border agent then
annual Scripps National
parents, Shankar examines, launching pad for the Bee. caught by a Border Patrol agent with the stopped the vehicle and Singh was arrested.
Spelling Bee this time are
in her book titled BEELINE, Less happily, the success of help of a Customs and Border Protection People illegally immigrating from Canada to
on May 30.
the outsize impact of immi‑ Indian‑American spellers Agency helicopter, was accused in a federal the US is a twist to the perceptions that
grant parents and explains why Gen Z kids has triggered some backlash on Twitter, court in Syracuse, New York, of transporting President Donald Trump's America is hostile
are on a path to success. with racist calls for white children to take two illegal immigrants for $2,200, federal to immigrants and Prime Minister Justin
Although Indian immigrants make up back the Bee. prosecutor Grant Jaquith announced on Trudeau's Canada welcomes them.

International Gujarati Film Festival in

California and New Jersey
New York: T he International
Gujarati Film Festival which aims to
promote the Gujarati cinema and
culture across the world is sched‑
uled to be held in California June 7‑
9, and in New Jersey June 15‑16.
After the success of the first edi‑
tion at New Jersey in August 2018,
where 4,500 people attended with
4500+ attendee, 2nd edition of The
International Gujarati Film Festival
will be held in 2 venues, June 7‑9 in
California, and June 15 and 16 in
New Jersey, according to a press
release. “This year, Gujarati Film
Industry will reach Hollywood and
show the land of dreams, the
dreams possessed by the Gujarati
filmmakers, actors and crew and
te ll the whole world that the
Gujarati film industry is creating
some of the most riveting cinema
out there,” organizers said in the
press release.
The initiative of the film festival
was taken by Kaushal Acharya of
Rostrum Media and 1947
Production and Entertainment Inc.
The Festival director is Umesh
Shukla, writer, and creator of many
Organizers of Gujarati International Film Festival at a kickoff event.
Gujarati plays and Bollywood films,
who made his directorial debut
with UTV Motion Pictures and
directed films like Oh My God, All is
Well, and most recently, 102 Not
Out featuring Big B Amitabh
Bachchan and Rishi Kapoor.
His blockbuster film Oh My God
was adopted from his own Gujarati
play Kanji v/s Kanji.
Jury members of 2nd edition of
The International Gujarati Film
Festival consist of well‑known and
much‑loved celebrities from both
Gujarati and Hindi entertainment
industry, the press release says,
including – actress and director
Gopi Desai, known for Mon Petit
Diable, Jhoothi, 1942 A Love Story,
and Roop Ki Rani Choron Ka Raja.
She is the recipient of the National
Film Award for Best Childrenʼs Film
Mujhse Dosti Karoge (1992), and
she has won Filmfare Award for
Llist of films to be screened
in Vadilal IGFF 2019
Feature films: Natsamrat,
Short circuit, Hve thahse Baap
re, Paatra, Suryansh, Shu
Thayu?!, I M A GUJJU, Back
Bencher, Ventilator, Order
Order out of Order, Family
Circus, Saheb, Bajaaba
Short Films: The Cycle, Mara
Dada, Maavtar, Conscience,
Gaanth
Best Documentary Manzar (1995);
Saumya Joshi, poet, writer, play‑
wright, director and actor, known
in Gujarati theater for his play,
Welcome Zindagi, and movie 102
Not Out. He has been awarded by
Chandravadan Chimanlal Mehta
Award for his contribution to
Gujarati theater in 2013; and popu‑
lar author, orator and proponent of
cinema, Jay Vasavada, whose
columns ʻSpectrometerʼ and
ʻAnavrutʼ covering a wide range of
Documentary Films: Mansi
kutch, Visarti jati kala Bhavai,
Satya ni prayogshala, GJ 1
Walls city to Morden city
Short Films on Ideals of
Gandhiji: Gandhi Hatya,
Vaishnav Jan, Bapa ane bapu,
Rebooting Mahatma,
#Byebyeplastic
subjects on society and culture,
run in ʻGujarat Samachar.ʼ
Along with the film's screening,
Vadilal IGFF also includes the red‑
carpet event, awards ceremony and
an opportunity to network.
This year Vadilal IGFF has added
a special Short Films category to
celebrate the 150th birth anniver‑
sary of Mahatma Gandhi.
Filmmakers can submit a film of 10
minutes or less, based on “The
Ideals of Mahatma Gandhi.”
TheSouthAsianTimes.info
Melborne: Dave Sharma, the
Liberal candidate and former
Australian ambassador to Israel,
has scripted history by becoming
the first Indian‑origin lawmaker
in the country's Parliament after
winning a seat in Sydney suburb
in the federal election.
Australian Prime Minister Scott
Morrison is close to securing a
majority government as the elec‑
t ion's final results are being
counted.
His conservative coalition has
defied polls and is leading with 77
seats, the Australian Electoral
Commission says. Only 76 seats
are needed for a majority.
Dave Sharma, 43, defeated inde‑
pendent candidate Kerryn Phelps
for the eastern suburb seat of
Wentworthin district.
Dave Sharma, who had lost to
Phelps in a by‑election six months
ago, claimed the seat of
Wentworth with 51.16 per cent of
the vote.
"Very humbled by the trust
placed in me by the people of
Wentworth. Look forward to
being a voice for them in
Parliament and the party room,"
Dave Sharma said in a tweet.
Odias world over reach Thousands sign petition to let Indian
out to rebuild their state woman with rare disease to stay in UK
Puri: They may be living miles
away from home but their heart
still beats for their homeland.
Acutely aware that more is less
for rebuilding their state, NROs
and those living in other parts
of the country, are doing their
bit to contribute to the Chief
Ministerʼs Relief Fund (CMRF).
While some of them are send‑
ing through payments, others
are mot ivat ing people to
donate. Some of them had expe‑
rienced the Super Cyclone
Phailin of 1999 in which Odisha
was nearly devastated with
10,500 live lost. So, they know
exactly what the situation must
be like on ground zero despite
better preparedness this time.
In the absence of extensive
media coverage about Cyclone
Fani, which made landfall in the
temple city of Puri, the Odisha
Society of UK has been organiz‑
ing fund‑raising events. Rashmi
K Nanda, a resident of London,
who has been spearheading the
drive, targets to collect 15,000
Dave Sharma first Indian‑origin
man to win in Australian election
Dave Sharma
He said the three main issues he
wanted to focus on were national
security, female workforce partici‑
pation and making sure Australia
remains at the high end of the
value chain.
"It''s been a long continuous
campaign for seven months for
me," he told reporters in Sydney. I
was helped by the tailwind of a
strong national campaign," he told
reporters on Monday. Sharma was
pounds for the CMRF.
On May 6, Nanda and his
friend, Santosh Patnaik organ‑
ized a 42.2 km marathon to
encourage people to donate, for
which they shared the fundrais‑
ing link created by the Odisha
Society of UK. They also distrib‑
uted leaflet imploring people to
donate generously.
This is not the first time that
the 40‑years old Odisha Society
of the UK has helped the people
back home through crowdfund‑
ing and other activities. They
plan to organize some other
activities including fundraiser
dinners too.
The most endearing gesture is
a huge display atop a building
in Times Square, New York,
which shows concern towards
the hardship the people of
Odisha are facing post cyclone
Fani. It reads, “Help Odisha,
Donate Now, We Are All In This
Together.”
(Source: odishabytes.com)
DIASPORA
Australia's ambassador to Israel
from 2013 to 2017. He also
brushed aside questions as to
whether he will be given a posi‑
tion in Prime Minister Morrison's
new Cabinet.
"I''ll be concentrating my time
over the next weeks, months and
years to being a good local repre‑
sentative," he was quoted as say‑
ing by T he Sydney Morning
Herald. "I'll be helping to protect
open spaces and parklands, fight
for better local infrastructure and
transport, helping preserve the
wonderful quality of life we have
here in Wentworth," he said.
Sharma also paid tribute to for‑
mer prime minister Malcolm
Turnbull, whom he described as a
"good friend." Turnbull was criti‑
cised by colleagues for not help‑
ing Sharma campaign in the by‑
election.
Born to a father of Indian her‑
London: Thousands of people
have signed an online petition
calling on the UK Home Office to
allow an Indian woman suffering
from a rare disease stay in
Britain.
T he pet it ion for Bhavani
Espathi, who is seriously ill with
Crohn's Disease, is edging close
to its 150,000‑signature target
on Change.Org.
It was launched by the 31‑year‑
old art ist's fiance Mart in
Mangler ‑‑ a German national
based in the UK as a volcanolo‑
gist ‑‑ in order to help with a
Home Office review of the case.
The Londoner's case came to
light recently after it emerged
that her application to stay in the
UK on human rights grounds had
been rejected.
"The doctors say she needs to
stay here, but the Home Of fice
wants to deport her to India.
They even threatened her with
deportat ion whilst she was
unconscious in coma," noted
Mangler's petition titled 'Let
itage and an Australian mother,
Dave's family settled in Sydney in
the 1970s.
Over 10 Indian‑origin candi‑
dates contested this year's federal
elections in Australia where the
Indian diaspora continues to grow
and has touched more than
700,000.
Other Liberal candidates who
contested but lost were Vivek
Singha and Sachin Joshi from New
South Wales and Hemant Dave
from South Australia.
Labor Party's candidates includ‑
ed Aruna Chandrala and
Parwinder Sarwara. Raj Samson
Rajwin, Prakul Chhabra, Jatinder
Singh, Sahil Chawla represented
United Australia Party (UAP).
A former international student
Nikhil Reddy contested elections
from Pauline Hanson‑led One
Nation party and the Greens'
Harkirat Singh. "It is a matter of
Bhavani Espathi requires a
specific immunosuppressant
which she says is currently
unavailable in India.
(Image courtesy: ndtv.com)
Bhavani Live.' "Doctors say her
life is at risk if she would be
deported. This means the Home
Of fice could be sending her to
her death.
The Home Office has admitted
that she wouldn't get as good
care in India, and pointed out
that she could get 'palliative care'
June 1-7, 2019 9
time before we have an increased
representation of Indians in the
state and federal parliament,"
Kaushliya Vaghela, the first India‑
born Member of Parliament in
Victoria said.
She said though the task of
cracking into Australian politics
was a dif ficult one for the first
generation migrants, there was a
need for Australian Parliament, at
both state and federal levels, to be
reflective of the diversity.
Stating that the scenario was
slowly changing, Vaghela who
arrived in Australia as internation‑
al student over two decades ago,
said, "I am the classic example of
that. I''m the first generation
migrant to become an MP last
year." "As Indian populat ion
increases in Australia we will have
more people participating in poli‑
tics, leading them to Parliament,"
she said. (PTI)
instead," it said.
Crohn's Disease is a digestive
tract disorder for which Bhavani
Espathi requires a specific
immunosuppressant, which she
says is currently unavailable in
India.
The Home Office has said that
her case is being reviewed again
after it was made aware of "fresh
evidence" in March.
"This cruel politics has to end
so that Bhavani can continue to
get the care she desperate ly
needs," urges her fiance's peti‑
tion, which has been signed by
over 147,000 people.
Bhavani Espathi, who came to
the UK as a student in 2010 and
has since created a social innova‑
tion online hub for people with
chronic illnesses called Invisible
Labs, underwent surgery in
September last year but it result‑
ed in complicat ions. She is
required to undergo further sur‑
geries because her stomach
never closed properly.
(PTI)
10 June 1-7, 2019 US AFFAIRS TheSouthAsianTimes.info

US judge blocks funds for Hillary slams Trump

Trump border wall plan
Washington: A US federal judge has passed an
order temporarily blocking President Donald
Trump's plan to build part of a Mexico border wall
with funds secured under his national Emergency
declaration. The ruling was passed by US District
Court Judge Haywood Gilliam of Oakland,
California, on Friday night after the American Civil
Liberties Union (ACLU) filed a lawsuit on behalf of
the Sierra Club environmental organization and the
Southern Border Communities Coalition. Another
was filed by a coalition of 20 US states. "The posi‑
tion that when Congress declines the Executive's
request to appropriate funds, the Executive
nonetheless may simply find a way to spend those
funds 'without Congress' does not square with fun‑
damental separation of powers principles dating
back to the earliest days of our Republic," the judge
said in his temporary injunction.
Although the ruling does not prevent the Trump
administration from using funds from other
sources to build the projects, it's a setback for the
President on a signature agenda item that has con‑
sistently been thwarted by Democrats in Congress,
CNN reported. Construction on the projects affect‑
ed by the ruling could have begun as early as
Saturday, according to the ruling. The ACLU said on
Twitter that it had won its motion on behalf of the
Sierra Club and the SBCC to block the "illegal con‑
struction of Trump's border wall".
"Construction using money illegally diverted
under the President's Emergency declaration was
set to begin as soon as tomorrow. This is a win for
our system of checks and balances, the rule of law,
and border communities," it said.
"The court blocked all wall projects currently slat‑
ed for immediate construction. If the Trump admin‑
istration begins illegally diverting additional funds,
we'll be back in court," it added.
In February, after a 35‑day partial government
shutdown, Congress approved $1.375 billion to
replace or extend existing barriers along the wall.
The figure was much lower than the $5.7 billion
sum Trump had demanded. He then declared a
national Emergency aiming to secure additional
money through diverting military, Defence and
Treasury funds.
"Congress' 'absolute' control over federal expen‑
ditures ‑ even when that control may frustrate the
desires of the Executive Branch regarding initia‑
tives it views as important ‑ is not a bug in our con‑
stitutional system. It is a feature of that system, and
an essential one," the ruling said.
for sharing doctored
Nancy Pelosi video
Washington: Hillary
Clinton has called
President Trumpʼs
sharing of an edited
Nancy Pelosi video
“sexist trash.”
While speaking at
a Harris County
Demo crat ic Party
event in Houston
Friday, she said:
remained on the site, with copy‑
“T he president and his cronies
cats proliferating.
have been running around spread‑
A group called Politics WatchDog
ing a doctored video of Nancy
posted the manipulated video of
Pelosi.”
Pelosi ‑‑ which was slowed down to
“Now, it is sexist trash, but it is
give the misimpression she was
also a sign that Trump is running
speaking in an impaired fashion at
scared,” she continued.
a think‑tank event ‑‑ at 1:29 p.m.
“So if you believe in the rule of
Eastern time on May 22.
law and the responsibility we all
But it wasn't until after 9 p.m. on
have to hold our leaders account‑
May 23, some 32 hours later, that
able, then we cannot relent on this
Facebook began suppressing the
front either.”
video after a fact‑check from one
CNN reported that It took
Facebook partner, LeadStories, was
Face book more than a day to
published.
downgrade the doctored video
Facebook partner Politifact didn't
making House Speaker Nancy
post its own fact‑check until the
Pelosi look like she was slurring
following morning on May 24.
her words ‑‑ and the video itself
TheSouthAsianTimes.info INDIA NEWS June 1-7, 2019 11

Rajasthan Congress leader Jagan will take oath as

bats for Pilot as CM
Jaipur: Amid a looming leadership
crisis in the Congress, thee state
party committee secretary Sushil
Asopa on Tuesday shared a post on
his Facebook wall supporting
Sachin Pilot as chief minister, bring‑
ing factionalism within the party to
the fore.
Asopa said the results in the Lok
Sabha elections would have been
different in Rajasthan had Congress
leader Sachin Pilot been made chief
minister.
Meanwhile, state BJP vice‑presi‑
dent Gyanchand Ahuja said, "I have
heard that BSP MLAs are not happy
in state and similar is the case with
around 20‑25 MLAs", he added.
The comments of these two lead‑
ers have added fuel to the fire in the
latest rounds of controversy sur‑
rounding leadership change in the
state. On Monday, six BSP leaders
supporting the Ashok Gehlot‑led
Congress government had sought
appointment with the Governor.
However, the meeting was called off
at the last moment.
In the 200‑member Rajasthan
Assembly, the Congress has 100
Had Sachin Pilot been chief minister instead of Ashok Gehlot,
Congress would not have got mauled in Rajasthan,
argue Pilotʼs supporters.
members, BJP 73, BSP 6, and a
score of other parties or
Independents.
Also, state cabinet minister
Lalchand Kataria's "resignation" ‑‑
which was neither confirmed by the
CM of fice nor by the Governor ‑‑
went viral.
Other minister, Ramesh Meena,
has called for analyzing the reasons
for the party's rout in the Lok Sabha
polls, saying the bureaucracy domi‑
Andhra CM on May 30
Amaravati: Following
in the footsteps of his
father YS
Rajasekhara Reddy,
YSRC president YS
Jaganmohan Reddy
alone will take the
oath on May 30.
After taking over the
reins of the state,
chief minister Jagan
will expand his cabi‑
net. "It (expansion)
will take another 7‑
10 days," he said at a
media conference in
New Delhi on Sunday.
As chief minister, YS Jaganmohan Reddy
Suspense over how
is determined to implement prohibition,
many ministers and an election promise.
nated the state government result‑
who w ill take oath
ing in many welfare works remain‑
along with the chief minister oath in a stadium instead of open
ing incomplete.
ended with Jagan's decision to g rounds ‑ Indira Gand hi
Udai Lal Anjana, state cooperative
take the oath alone. His father Municipal Corporation (IGMC)
minister, also questioned distribu‑
YSR had also taken the oath as stadium in Vijayawada.
tion of tickets and on the Congress
chief minister in 2004 without Andhra Pradesh is set to go dry
not aligning with Hanuman
inducting any minister in the in phases as Chief Minister‑desig‑
Beniwal's Rashtriya Loktantrik
cabinet. He expanded his cabinet nate Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy
Party (RLP). He said that Vaibhav
only after getting the nod from appears determined to imple‑
Gehlot, son of Chief Minister Ashok
the‑then AICC chief Sonia Gandhi. ment prohibit ion, one of his
Gehlot, should have contested elec‑
Jagan has decided to take his major election promises.
tion from Jalore.

Mamata’s two MLAs, over K’taka, MP govts try to placate rebels

New Delhi: The Congress and its

50 councillors join BJP allies moved to secure state govern‑

Kolkata: T he Trinamool
Congress (TMC), which suffered
a shock in West Bengal after los‑
ing a third of its seats to the BJP
in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections,
faced yet another jolt on
Tuesday, after two of its MLAs
and over 50 councillors defected
to the saffron party.
The two MLAs to have defected
are Subhrangshu Roy, legislator
from the Bijpur assembly con‑
st ituency and Tusharkant i
Bhattacharya from Bishnupur
assembly constituency. Another
MLA from the CPI‑M, Debendra
Nath Roy from the Hemtabad
constituency, also jumped ship to
join the saffron wave in the state.
Royʼs father Mukul Roy, once
considered as a close confidante
of TMC supremo and chief minis‑
ter Mamata Banerjee, had desert‑
ed her to join the BJP in 2017. A
former railway minister on a
TMC ticket, the senior Roy had,
in the past, been questioned by
the CBI in connection to the
Saradha chit fund scam.
The junior Roy was suspended
from the TMC for six years on
Monday for anti‑party activities.
This apart, the chairman and
vice chairman of the boards of
the Naihat i, Halishahar and
Kanchrapara municipality con‑
TMC supremo and chief
minister Mamata Banerjee
stituencies, along with over 50
councillors joined the BJP result‑
ing in the TMC losing its hold
over them.
“During the election campaign,
prime minister Narendra Modi
had said that 40 MLAs from
West Bengal are with us and
Derek OʼBrien (TMC leader at
Rajya Sabha) had Tweeted that it
wonʼt happen. Today, more than
50 councillors and three MLAs
have joined the BJP,” said Kailash
Vijayvargiya, national general
secretary of the BJP. He said
more such TMC leaders are wait‑
ing to join the BJP but all of them
will not be inducted.
ments in Madhya Pradesh and
Karnataka on Monday by attempt‑
ing to placate rebels and independ‑
ents after reports of rumblings fol‑
lowing a poor Lok Sabha poll per‑
formance.
In Madhya Pradesh, a senior state
Congress leader said on condition
of anonymity that the party was
looking at appointments to govern‑
ment‑run boards and corporations
and expansion of the council of
ministers to avert any possible cri‑
sis. “There is no threat to my gov‑
ernment. Let the floor test takes
place. We are ready for it,” chief
minister Kamal Nath said.
The Congress, which has 114
MLAs in the 230‑member house, is
dependent on four independent,
two BSP and one Samajwadi Party
(SP) MLAsʼ support. Of these, only
one independent MLA – Pradeep
Jaiswal – is a minister. T he
Congress won just one of the 29
Lok Sabha seats in the state.
The Congress and the Janata Dal
(Secular) also appeared to prefer
the expansion of cabinet route to
ward off any risk to its government
in Karnataka, where the BJP won
25 of the 28 Lok Sabha seats. At
present there are three vacancies in
the state cabinet, two of the JD(S)
and one of the Congress.
But a senior Congress leader said
on condition of anonymity that an
expansion may also cause more dis‑
Under pressure after BJP steals their show: Madhya Pradesh
CM Kamal Nath, and Karnataka CM H.D. Kumaraswamy.
content. “The whole exercise is
fraught with the risk that those
who miss out might kick up a row,”
the leader said. The Congress has
80 MLAs and the JD(S) 37 in a 224‑
member house.
The fate of the so‑called rebel
Congress MLAs remains unclear.
Ramesh Jarkiholi, who had said in
April that he would quit, has said all
would be clear soon. “I cannot
speak to the media at this time. You
will get to know my decision in due
course,” Jarkiholi said. Mahesh
Kumathahalli, another dissident
MLA, has denied reports suggesting
he was close to resigning. “Jarkiholi
and I are with the Congress and
will remain in the party. All reports
in the media are mere speculation,”
he said
Last week, MP chief minister
Kamal Nath had accused the oppo‑
sition BJP, which won 28 of the 29
Lok Sabha seats in the state, of try‑
ing to lure Congress MLAs. One of
his ministerial colleagues
Pradyumn Sing h Tomar even
alleged that some Congress legisla‑
tors were offered as much as Rs 50
crore to switch sides. Former chief
minister and senior BJP leader
Shivraj Singh Chouhan has said he
is not in favor of a floor test.
According to the MP Congress
leader quoted above, the state gov‑
ernment is now waiting for the
model code of conduct, which is in
force because of the Lok Sabha
polls, to be lifted to take a number
of measures to placate disgruntled
MLAs.
State BJP vice‑president Vijesh
Lunawat said, “Itʼs not BJP but
Congress MLAs are expressing
their resentment over governmentʼs
poor performance and ministers
are not paying any heed to them.”
Political analyst Girija Shankar
said, “Nobody knows whether the
BJP will topple the Congress gov‑
ernment but Kamal Nath looks
under pressure. Hence, his all the
decisions appear to be in the
direct ion of protect ing his
government.”
 12 June 1-7, 2019
Congress in crisis, resignations pile up
New Delhi: Ree ling under the
impact of poll debacle, the Congress
is in deep trouble, with party chief
Rahul Gandhi insisting on quitting
the post amid a series of resigna‑
tions, setting the stage for a likely
meeting of its highest decision‑mak‑
ing body, the Congress Working
Committee (CWC), in the next four
days.
Amid indications that the party
was considering a presidium system
for taking it forward, the CWC is
likely to discuss the leadership
issue, sources said on Monday.
It is learnt that Rahul Gandhi has
conveyed that he has not changed
his mind to quit.
UPA Chairperson Sonia Gandhi
and party general secretary
Priyanka Gandhi are also learnt to
have come to terms with his view
that there should be a change of
guard, though they have been of the
view that the blame for defeat can‑
not be put on one person.
During the day, party treasurer
Ahmed Patel and general secretary
K.C. Venugopal met Rahul and tried
to persuade him not to press for his
exit from the post.
Ram ka kaam ho kar
hi rahega: RSS chief
Jaipur: Days after the
BJP led NDA scripted a
resounding victory in
the Lok Sabha elections,
RSS chief Mohan
Bhagwat said that "Ram
ka kaam karna hai, Ram
ka kaam ho kar hi rahe‑
ga (Ram's work needs
to be done and Ram's
work will be done)."
Bhagwat made the
comments during his
visit to Udaipur on
Sunday for a "mandir
pran pratishtha" pro‑
gram in Pratap Gaurav
Kendra, where he was
RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat
accompanied by spiritu‑
al leader Morari Bapu.
The program was first addressed Mahali, Imam of Eidgah and a
by Morari Bapu. Soon after his
address, Bhagwat said, "We should
remember the message given by
Morari Bapu. Ram's work needs to
be done and Ram's work will be
done. Ram resides in our hearts.
We all need to be active and move
ahead to fulfil our goals."
Even before the Lok Sabha elec‑
tions, the RSS had pitched for the
construction of Ram temple in
Ayodhya, and had asked the Modi‑
led government to hasten the
process of temple construction.
Bhagwat's comment has evoked
a sharp reaction from the Muslim
clergy.
Congress leaders Mallikarjun Kharge, K. C. Venugopal, Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi, Manmohan Singh and A.K.
Antony attended the CWC meeting in New Delhi on May 25, 2019. (Photo: IANS)
However, Patel later said that he
had gone to meet Rahul for routine
administrative work.
Sources said the CWC is also like‑
ly to look at the structural reforms
needed by the party.
T here is also a view in the
Congress that Rahul is sending a
clear message to the old guard by
holding out because there should be
full freedom in decision‑making.
Sources said Rahul Gandhi did not
Maulana Khalid Rashid Firangi
Sunni cleric, said: "It is not right to
make such statements when the
matter is in the Supreme Court.
The mediation process is also on
under the court supervision.”
Zafaryab Jilani, a member of the
All India Muslim Personal Law
Board and also of the All India
Babri Masjid Action Committee,
one of the petitioners in the
Ayodhya case, said: "Muslims have
always said they will accept the
Supreme Court verdict. So why
make such statements? More so, at
a time when the Prime Minister
has called for instilling confi‑
dence."
INDIA NEWS
give appointment to Rajasthan
Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot in an
apparent snub to him. The Congress
President was not keen on Gehlot
seeking ticket for his son. Gandhi is
also learnt to have declined other
appointments including of newly‑
elected MPs who wanted to see him.
Gandhi had offered to resign tak‑
ing moral responsibility for the
party's defeat but the CWC at its
meeting on Saturday unanimously
NDA likely to get Rajya
Sabha majority by Nov 2020
New Delhi: The BJP‑led NDA is like‑
ly to get majority in Rajya Sabha by
November next year which will
complete BJPʼs domination of
Parliament and clear the way for
the Narendra Modi government to
push some key legislations which
have been stalled in the Upper
House where the numbers favored
the opposition benches in NDAʼs
first term.
At present, NDA has 102 mem‑
bers in Rajya Sabha while Congress‑
led UPA has 65. Parties not aligned
to either block have 73 in the
House where support of 123 is
needed to cross the half‑way mark.
Ten seats will fall vacant in 2019
and 72 in 2020. Fifty‑five of the 72
seats will fall vacant in April, five in
June, one in July and 11 (including
10 from Uttar Pradesh) in
November next year.
The ruling alliance will have to
win the three assembly polls in
Maharashtra, Haryana and
Jharkhand, which are lined up this
year as BJPʼs defeat in six states ̶
Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan,
Chhattisgarh, Odisha, Telangana
and Andhra Pradesh ‑ have delayed
its prospects of getting the magic
mark till November next year.
Absence of majority prevented the
Modi government in its first term to
get parliamentary approval for
some key legislations like the Triple
TheSouthAsianTimes.info
rejected the offer.
Meanwhile, three more state
party chiefs have tendered their res‑
ignations, taking the total number
to six.
Congress party chiefs of
Jharkhand, Assam and Punjab have
also resigned in addition to those
from Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh
and Odisha. Karnataka Pradesh
Campaign Committee chairman H.K.
Patil has also resigned.
This will clear the way for the Modi
government to push some key legislations
which have been stalled in the Upper House.
Talaq bill and amendments to the
Citizenship Act.
The members may not see two
former Prime Ministers among
them in Parliament as H D Deve
Gowda lost Lok Sabha poll while
Manmohan Singh is retiring from
Rajya Sabha next month. With
Singhʼs departure, Congress is set to
lose its biggest UPA mascot at a
time when the party appears
already in the midst of an existen‑
tial crisis
Singh is currently member from
Assam, but Congress cannot retain
his seat from the state in upcoming
polls for the Upper House on June
7. Besides Singh, another Congress
Rajya Sabha member from the state,
Punjab Congress chief Sunil
Jakhar, who was the sitting MP
from Gurdaspur, sent his resigna‑
tion to Rahul Gandhi taking moral
responsibility for losing to actor
Sunny Deol from the seat. T he
Congress has generally done well in
Punjab winning eight of 13 Lok
Sabha seats.
Jharkhand Congress chief Ajoy
Kumar has also tendered his resig‑
nation. The party won only one seat
in the state where it had an alliance
with the JMM, RJD and other par‑
ties.
T he party's Assam unit chief
Ripun Bora also wrote to Gandhi
taking moral responsibility for the
party not being able to increase its
tally from three seats last time.
Maharashtra unit chief Ashok
Chavan, Uttar Pradesh unit chief Raj
Babbar, and Odisha Congress chief
Niranjan Patnaik have already sent
their resignations.
Yogendra Misra, the district
Congress chief in Amethi in Uttar
Pradesh, has also sent his resigna‑
tion, owning moral responsibility
for Rahul Gandhi's defeat from the
constituency.
Santiuse Kujur, will also retire on
June 14. Both seats will go to BJP
and its ally as Congress does not
have the required number in the
state assembly.
Though eight more Rajya Sabha
seats will go to polls this year, it
wonʼt give Congress a chance to
send Singh or any other party mem‑
ber to the upper House in 2019
unless it enlists DMKʼs support for
the former PM for a berth from
Tamil Nadu.
Six seats will fall vacant in Tamil
Nadu in July while one each from
Bihar and Odisha will need to be
filled this year. Congress doesnʼt
have enough MLAs in these assem‑
blies to get even a single RS seat.
TheSouthAsianTimes.info INDIA ELECTIONS June 1-7, 2019 13

New Delhi: The NDA's landslide vic‑

Fly on the wall: Likely

tory in the Lok Sabha elections has
put the spotlight on the next big
headline: the men and women who
will be in Prime Minister Narendra

candidates in NaMo cabinet

Modi's council of ministers.
Modi, the first Prime Minister to
win two clear majorities in a row,
could possibly bring in new faces in
his Council of Ministers.
There is intense speculation that
BJP President Amit Shah might be
given a heavyweight Cabinet berth.
He was not included in the Council
of Ministers in the first term of the
Modi government.
But since the party has a policy of
one person not being given two
positions, Shah may have to give up
his role as the BJP chief in case he is
inducted in the Council of Ministers.
It is also being said that Piyush
Goyal, who held the finance portfo‑
Arun Jaitley, who is said to
indisposed, is likely to be
made Minister without
Portfolio. Amit Shah might be
given a heavyweight Cabinet
berth, but will have to give up
his role as party chief because
BJP has a policy of one person
not being given two positions.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi and BJP chief Amit Shah
meet party veteran L.K. Advani at his residence in
New Delhi. (Photo: Twitter/@narendramodi)
lio when Arun Jaitley was unwell, is
a candidate for this top portfolio.
Goyal, the Railways Minister, has
been chipping in whenever Jaitley
had to take leave for medication for
his ailment.
Jaitley, who is said to indisposed,
is like ly to be made Minister
Without Portfolio.
Jaitley was conspicuous by his
absence on Thursday evening at the
victory celebrations held at the BJP
headquarters led by the Prime
Minister and Shah. Prior to the cele‑
brations, Shah went to meet him at
his residence.
The first major task before the
new Finance Minister will be to
present the full Budget by July. In
February, Piyush Goyal had present‑
ed the Interim Budget in view of the
Lok Sabha elections.
Smriti Irani, who held Textiles
portfolio till now, is expected to get
back the HRD Ministry, considering
that she has emerged as a giant
killer by defeating Congress
President Rahul Gandhi in his fami‑
ly pocket borough Amethi.
Gadkari, who was Minister for
Road Transport and Highways,
Shipping and Water Resources, may
also get a bigger portfolio in view of
the successful work done by him in
the ministries held by him in the
first term. He is also believed to
Modi elected BJP, NDA
parliamentary party leader
New Delhi: Narendra Modi was
e lected the leader of the
Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and
the National Democratic Alliance
(NDA) parliamentary party at a
funct ion in Central Hall of
Parliament on Saturday.
"I am happy to announce that
the BJP parliamentary party has
unanimously elected Narendra
Modi as its leader," BJP President
Amit Shah announced.
Veteran Shiromani Akali Dal
(SAD) leader and former Punjab
Chief Minister Parkash Singh
Badal moved the resolution to
have the blessings of the RSS. Ram
Madhav, BJP's General Secretary
(Organisation), may also be made a
Minister and given an important
portfolio with Cabinet rank. Former
Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje is
also likely to be inducted in the
ministry with a Cabinet berth.
Among other new faces who
could be brought in is former
Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister
Shivraj Singh.
Niti Aayog too may have a new
vice chairman with Nandan Nilekeni
elect Modi as the leader of the
NDA parliamentary party.
The resolution was supported
by Janata Dal‑United ( JD‑U)
President and Bihar Chie f
Minister Nit ish Kumar, Lok
Janshakti Party (LJP) chief Ram
Vilas Paswan, Shiv Sena chief
Uddhav T hackeray and other
leaders of the NDA.
After being elected leader of
the NDA, Modi touched the feet
of BJP veterans L.K. Advani,
Murali Manohar Joshi and
Parkash Singh Badal and sought
their blessings.
replacing Rajiv Kumar.
There may also been new repre‑
sentatives from the NDA allies, like
the Shiv Sena and JD(U).
The new Council of Ministers is
also likely to see some of the minis‑
ters of the outgoing Council not
finding their place. Among them are
Hansraj Ahir and Shiv Sena's Anant
Geete, both of whom lost the just‑
held Lok Sabha elections.
There is also a possibility of Uma
Bharati not finding a place in the
new Council of Ministers.

Trinamool in shock, fear What foreign media said

of mass exodus looms
Kolkata: After suffering major setbacks in the
Lok Sabha polls, despondency of the West
Bengal's ruling Trinamool Congress is palpa‑
ble. The Mamata Banerjee‑ruled party's work‑
ers and leaders appear to be in a fix, amid
repeated claims by the BJP camp that many of
its MLAs were ready to switch sides.
While the Trinamool leaders publicly have
been putting the blame on the CPI‑M for the
"transfer of its vote" to the BJP, off the record
they speak of the incessant factional feuds,
the muscle‑flexing by the party during last
year's Panchayat polls when opponents were
not even allowed to file nominations, and the
"rampant corruption" of the middle and lower
level fucntionaries in the districts.
The Trinamool, which had won 34 seats in
the general elections five years back, saw its
number drastically slashed to 22 this time,
amid a saffron surge that gave the Bharatiya
Janata Party an unprecedented 18 seats. The
BJP had won only two seats in 2014.
There is much to worry in the Trinamool
camp with tough days ahead. The leadership
and the booth level workers seem resigned to
the "certainty" of the BJP government putting
enormous pressure on the Trinamool by
"using the central agencies" and getting the
CBI to step up probe into the Narada sting
West Bengal Chief Minister
Mamata Banerjee.
footage case as also into the Saradha ponzi
scam cases. Already, the Enforcement
Directorate has served a notice on the daugh‑
ter of a Trinamool leader relating to a money
laundering case, party sources said. However,
there was no official confirmation.
Aware of the undercurrent of tension in the
party, senior Trinamool leaders have been
huddling at Banerjee's house daily to devise
ways of keeping the flock together.
"The Prime Minister (Narendra Modi), BJP
national president Amit Shah and other lead‑
ers have been claiming that 40‑100 of our
MLAs are eager to switch sides. We have faith
in our MLAs. But there is lot of factional
feuds. We are careful," said a Trinamool
leader on condition of anonymity.
about Modi's victory
New Delhi: As India gave Prime Minister
Narendra Modi a historic mandate with
the ruling BJP returning to power in the
Lok Sabha, here's how the foreign media
covered Modi's victory. The UK's Guardian
in an editorial said that the landslide win
for Modi will see "India's soul lost to a
dark politics ‑ one that views almost all
195 million Indian Muslims as second‑
class citizens". "The biggest election in his‑
tory has just been won by one man:
Narendra Modi. In 2014 the Bharatiya
Janata party won an absolute majority for
the first time in its history... Despite a
spluttering economy five years later, Modi
seems certain to have expanded his parlia‑
mentary majority. This is bad news for
India and the world," the editorial stated.
T houg h the daily called Mo di a
"undoubtedly a charismatic campaigner",
it said that "rather than transcend the
faultlines of Indian society ‑ religion, caste,
region and language ‑ Modi's style is to
throw them into sharp relief".
Pakistani daily Dawn in an editorial said
that "communal politics in India has tri‑
umphed in an age that will define the
future of the republic". "The results are
astounding, and depressingly show that
religious hatred and sectarian politics can
be exploited to lure voters." The daily said
that the "focus must now turn to a practi‑
cal way forward for sustainable peace in
the subcontinent".
Author Pankaj Mishra in a piece for the
New York Times said: "Over five years of
Modi's rule, India has suf fered variously
from his raw wisdom, most gratuitously in
November 2016, when his government
abruptly withdrew nearly 90 per cent of
currency notes from circulation.
"From devastating the Indian economy
to risking nuclear Armageddon in South
Asia, Modi has confirmed that the leader
of the world's largest democracy is dan‑
gerously incompetent."
"India under Mo di's rule has been
marked by continuous explosions of vio‑
lence in both virtual and real worlds," the
opinion piece said.
Author Vivan Marwaha, in an opinion
piece for the Washington Post said:
"Despite a record‑high unemployment rate,
a slowing economy and widespread agrari‑
an distress, Indians overwhelmingly decid‑
ed to give Prime Minister Narendra Modi
and his Bharatiya Janata Party a second
chance to put the country back on track."
 14 June 1-7, 2019
Thrilled by Modiʼs euphoric victory
Generally speaking, most Indian Americans are pleased
by the results of the Indian election that has led the
way to the second triumphant term of NaMo as PM.
HERE ARE A COUPLE OF REACTIONS.
Modi 2.0 and the North-South India wins yet again
political divide in India
By Shaker Nelanuthala
T
his is a follow up to my South Asian Times article
from January 2019 where I predicted a victory for
Prime Minister Narendra Modi. On May 23 the
election results proved mw right. In fact, BJP and NDA
won a massive 303 / 353 seats respectively in the Lok
Sabha election for
542 seat. T he
Congress party
was obliterated
with just 52 seats,
not even muster‑
ing enough seats
to qualify as the
Opposition party.
Yes, South India
has been a holdout
as BJP swept the
North. But before I
de lve into that I
would like to make a couple of observations on the
results in states like Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal.
Such a big win in UP (62/80 seats), how is that even pos‑
sible? I figured that the Muslim population in UP was
tired of caste and religion based politics. The Muslim
youth were more interested in opportunities than voting
on religious lines. I also believe that the BJP this time got
a bigger share of the Muslim women vote as Mr. Modi
had advocated against Triple Talaq. It is a stroke of
genius when Mr. Modi said at a public meeting in
Bhadohi, UP, and I quote, “I would like to tell the Muslim
sisters of Bhadohi and across the nation, several coun‑
tries donʼt have the provision for (instant) triple talaq.
We do not want to disrespect anyoneʼs religious feelings
and traditions; we are only following the Constitution.
The Constitution provides for equal rights to everyone."
By appealing to Muslim women by trying to ban triple
talaq, the prime minister portrayed his party as the one
fighting to liberate them from patriarchy and religious
orthodoxy (Ref: Livemint).
In West Bengal, the Trinamool Congress led by Mamata
Banerjee got a shellacking by losing 12 seats, which
increased the strength of the BJP to 18 in 2019. Ms.
Banerjee always played politics by pandering to the ille‑
gal immigrants from Bangladesh. On the other hand, the
BJP manifesto, in addition to offering economic incen‑
tives to Bengalis, outlined a plan to deport all the illegals
back to their home country, and the idea worked.
Now coming to the BJPʼs spotty performance in South
VOX POPULI TheSouthAsianTimes.info
By Neelima Madan
A
triumphant Narendra Modi tweeted “India wins yet again” and
India, I would say that these states are mostly caste
said in his victory speech, “I bow to the 1.3 billion people of
based and this cannot be changed in the near future.
India. If someone is victorious, it is India. If someone is victori‑
In Karnataka, the BJP is the party of the elites, educat‑
ous, it is democracy. If someone is
ed, Shaivites and is also extremely farmer friendly. This
victorious, it is the electorate.”
propelled them to a convincing victory by taking 25 of
In the just concluded Indian
the 28 MP seats.
election, the ruling BJP has been
In Tamil Nadu, the BJP by itself will find it very hard to
swept back to power with 303
make any inroads because the state is dominated by local
seats and NDA landed with 352
politics and by two parties, the DMK (aligned with
seats. This was made possible by
Congress) and the ADMK (ties up with BJP). Anti‑incum‑
the countryʼs 900 million regis‑
bency factor was at play here this time and the electorate
tered voters, a majority being
gave the mandate to the DMK. But remember A. Raja, the
women. Women also won the
Telecom minister in the UPA government that got indict‑
highest ever number of seats in
ed on a $40B corruption scandal and some of the other
the 2019 elections.
cronies? All of them have got elected. God help this state
A major shock was delivered, for
and the country.
the second loss in a row, to the
An incorrigible Kerala is dominated by caste politics
Indian National Congress of
and plays well into the hands of the Congress which is
Mahatma Gandhi and Jawaharlal Nehru, once a pan‑India party. They
good at playing dive and rule. Here Hindus make up 54%,
campaigned on lukewarm pluralist platform. Their debacle comes
and Muslims plus Christians make up 46% of the popula‑
with many lessons. Rahul Gandhi, of the Nehru‑Gandhi heritage and
tion. After bifurcation of Andhra Pradesh, the state of
leader of the Congress party, is held responsible by default. He even
Telangana was founded by the TRS party (Telangana
lost Amethi, their ʻsure winʼ seat! Now the dynasty of Rahulʼs great‑
Rashtra Samithi), which is currently in power. In 2019
grandfather, grandmother, father, uncle, mother and sister with high‑
there seems to be cracks in TRS as BJP won 4 of the 17
profile political positions is finally nearing an end.
parliamentary seats, mostly attributed to unrest by the
Several national and regional parties fielded or tried to form coali‑
farming community. If the BJP comes up with credible
tions to win collectively, but this election was a referendum on Modi.
leaders going into 2024, this could potentially become a
Modiʼs image is centered in his humble roots and his common man
saffron state.
appeal. So naturally, the election result is termed the victory of the
In Andhra Pradesh, BJP was allied with the Telugu
expectations of the honest citizens of India. It has also changed the
Desam Party in 2014, which sent 16 MPs to the center.
very nature of Indian politics.
In 2019, an egregious miscalculation by the TDP leader‑
Modi is winning because itʼs not just about the candidate to lead the
ship to break away from the BJP alliance made the TDP
country, but one who dares to be different and focuses the narrative
lose 13 seats. Now the YSR Congress party has 22 MPs.
on change within the country that could shape India not only over the
The YSRC also swept the AP state elections and the state
next five years of the parliamentʼs term, but for the future of India. Itʼs
will have a new Chief Minister in Jagan Mohan Reddy. A
about national security as also foreign relations especially with USA,
man with a checkered past, he will throw his uncondi‑
China and Pakistan. The path of growth of the economy, progress and
tional support to the NDA as long as his past corruption
prosperity of the nation must be a visible vision not just mere words.
cases are not brought up against him. He will forever be
People have cast their votes with hopes for a healthy economy, avail‑
indebted to the BJP leadership and this will only
ability of basic necessities for all, ease of doing business, better job
strengthen the NDA in this southern state. In the end it is
opportunities, uplifting of livelihood, solutions for farmersʼ problems,
a quid pro quo and I guess it happens in politics!
transparency of good governance, freedom from terrorism and cor‑
I personally believe that the Congress party will be
ruption.
completely vaporized (RIP) and will not be around to
Every patriotic common man in India wishes for a stable, strong and
contest another election. Mr. Modi, the BJP and the NDA
wealthy India once called “Sone Ki Chidiyaʼ. Modi has credibly prom‑
with their tenacity, will dominate Indian politics for a
ised that and therefore he won with what is being called an election
generation and more. Jai Hind!
tsunami!
Mr. Shaker Nelanuthala ‑ is from New York, an IT &
property management consultant and an editorial con‑ Neelima Madan is a BJP activist, and associated with
tributor to The South Asian Times. many community causes and organizations.
TheSouthAsianTimes.info
Dharmic or divisive?
Prominent Indian Americans comment on the results
of the Indian election that has led the way to the
second triumphant term of NaMo as PM.
Narendra Modi is a
Dharmic choice!
By Vibhuti Jha
L F
eading thinkers and editors made serious erro‑
neous pronouncements when they created an
equivalence in comparing Narendra Modi led
NDA and an unknown leader led UPA in this gigantic
election of 2019 to lead India for the next five years.
Some even went
so far as to call
the choice as
between the devil
and the deep sea
as also calling
Mo di a divider
and a threat to
democracy.
In reality the sit‑
uat ion is much
better, the choice
quite clear and
the future rather
bright for the peo‑
ple of India and the country itself as they re‑elected
PM Modi led NDA.
This election was actually a battle between the
forces of Dharm and Adharm, a battle between sur‑
vival of hope and the despair of deception and false‑
hoods. Politics is a highly emotionally surcharged
business and as such we ought to look at the happen‑
ings as a football coach ‑ from the sidelines, emotion‑
ally involved and dispassionately steadfast to follow
through the strategy to win.
Why do I call Modi led NDA as party of Dharm and
the leaderless Mahagathbandhan called UPA as party
of Adharm?
Letʼs begin with the century plus old Congress party,
established by two Brits to allow and give the then
political leadership of India a voice to relieve occa‑
sional pressures. Post‑independence the Congress
party kept the hold over the imagination of the people
in clear disregard to Mahatma Gandhiʼs desire to
return to the villages to serve the poor and the down‑
trodden. However, he was ignored and power seekers
hung on to political power. Between Jawaharlal,
Indira, Rajiv, Sonia and Rahul, the Family has had an
almost mafiaesque stranglehold on party affairs. No
one dared talk about an alternative to the not‑so‑real
Gandhis. To continue the legacy, Priyanka Vadra was
deployed this time to campaign as though there was
no other vote catcher left in the entire party. Clearly,
the Congress and its agenda have already past the
expiration date. People rejected this choice.
People of India had begun to look with cynicism at
Rahul trotting like a janeyudhari (sacred thread wear‑
er) or his pompous proclamation to offer a slave like
payment of Rs 72,000 a year to each of the poorest.
This was another failed program of misplaced inten‑
tions and deception when you promise to give people
anything so long as Rahul or the Congress party donʼt
have to give nor do they have any money to give.
VOX POPULI
People understood that Congress party was not serv‑
ing the people but themselves.
As for the infamous Mahagathbandhan ‑ this is
another adharmic collection of people with a sole pur‑
pose of defeating NaMo led NDA. With all their myriad
pre‑poll arrangements, people figured out what the
post‑poll arrangements would look like! Who will be
the PM will be a comical drama. It may be easier to
become a millionaire by playing “Karun Banega
Crorepati” than electing a Mahagathbandhan PM as a
band of dirty dozen extracting their own pound of
flesh!
Every Indian knows that such political arrangements
are suicidal for the country. Decision making becomes
a victim of political expediency. National security
becomes a charade of keeping peace at whatever cost.
And every political party becomes more insistent than
Shylock demanding their pound of flesh! And thus I
wondered why any Indian would self‑invite the curse
of instability, corruption, chaos and loot engineered by
a few! This choice of adharm was also rejected out‑
right.
Finally, the choice of NaMo and his NDA does appear
to be the Dharmic choice for all Indians. Itʼs not a
“there is no alternative (TINA)” syndrome or dilemma!
Itʼs actually the much awaited rightful choice. Itʼs not
about being a bhakt either. Itʼs a joyful option that
people accepted. Being a bhakt is better than being a
slave to a moribund party and giving in to suffering
with indentured servitude. Modi is a politician and to
expect a politician to be perfect is unfair, dangerous
and damaging because politics is not a business meant
for the weak hearted! Itʼs true that Modi “could and
should” have done more! But why didnʼt or couldnʼt
he? Itʼs because executing anything or everything in
India becomes a 1.3 billion people problem! Modi is
not trying to win a Miss Congeniality award. He has
taken up the challenge of fighting the obesity of cor‑
ruption established by 65 years of corrupt Congress
rule. Just as Hinduism is a way of life, corruption
unfortunately became part of Indian life. The dishon‑
orable badge of corrupt Indian that we wore is finally
falling of f the chest of every Indian. Unless Indians
wanted to self invite the corrupt practices back again,
why wonʼt they want Modi back? People gave Mr.
Modi time to ef fect changes and if Indians could
af ford to give Congress rule as much time as they
gave, then surely Modi needs another term to clean up
India even more.
Modi has led India as a global leader. It is the sup‑
port base built with so many relationships established
by him that China had to reluctantly accept the desig‑
nation of those evil murderers sitting across Indiaʼs
borders as global terrorists declared by a UNSC reso‑
lution passed in that regard. The man of action has
demonstrated, action pays.
God bless India and every Indian to lead and walk
towards a great future.
ITV Gold Anchor, ʻFrankly Speaking with
Vibhuti Jhaʼ
June 1-7, 2018 15
Choice of the majority
can still be wrong
By Aleya Jung
or the process to be legit is not enough cause to celebrate;
throughout history tyrants and divisive leaders have been sup‑
ported by a vast majority and that has in the end been the
countryʼs cross to bear.” I posted the above on Facebook with refer‑
ence to the results of the recent Lok Sabha elections in India. I was
asked to elaborate by the editor of
this paper.
Well, I essentially mean that a
process can be legitimate but the
result not necessarily apt, con‑
ducive, and satisfactory. You can‑
not hide behind a democratic
process and say, “it was the will of
the people”. This comes to mind
with complete clarity with the
phenomenon of Pragya Thakur:
she won handsomely from Bhopal,
she of BJP, she an accused terror‑
ist out on bail, accused of involve‑
ment in bombings that killed 10 and injured 82 in Malegaon, granted
bail on health grounds, given a ticket by BJP and now part of the rul‑
ing BJP government. How does one explain the will of the people, they
voted her in, they voted legally, yet India now has an accused terrorist,
who has not been cleared by the courts. How does then one explain
this democratic process?
From 2014‑2018 there have been 63 incident of cow vigilantism,
24 Muslims have been murdered, and 124 injured. (Reuters)
In Punjab Re. 200 is said to be charged per cow by cow vigilantes as
protection money. Cow slaughter and consumption is well and flour‑
ishing in India – as long as the price is right. (Indian Express investiga‑
tion)
Stabbed for death for digging a well. A 15‑year‑old killed for falling
in love with a girl from the upper caste. A 19‑year‑old beheaded and
burnt. (More headlines from India)
Open Doors World Watch list has India at # 10 from a few years
back at # 58. 216 violent crimes including 2 murders since 2014 ,
double‑digit number of churches burnt across India, priests killed.
This is the plight of the minorities in India. The BJP will have one
believe otherwise; they will label these as isolated incidents, they will
dissociate themselves from what is happening, say this is not “party
policy” but the reports are in and numbers do not lie, the frequency
and the subsequent inaction is alarming.
I am sure the other side will cite Congressʼ inadequacies and they
will be correct, but Mr. Modi came in with an agenda to change all
that ‑ didnʼt he? Looks like things have changed only for the majority
and for the already well‑to‑do and the privileged.
The demonetization crippled the backs of daily workers, farmers,
and your regular housewife who squirrels away rupees in a DIY mon‑
eybox. It crippled everyone but the fortunate. No black money came
back. Jobs, where? GST, a disaster. And farmersʼ crisis worsened under
the Modi administration. Rs 6000 per farmer notwithstanding.
Yes, there was an increase in the infrastructure. Thank God for small
mercies ‑ it was not supposed to be like this‑
No wonder, Mr. Modi didnʼt run on any of the issues he promised.
He chose to run on Pulwama and Balakot. He chose to run on fear,
fear of a minority that lives in ghettos and has laryngitis for a voice.
Based in Long Island, Aleya Jung is Operations Manager‑
Home Care Solutions, and is in real estate business.
 16 June 1-7, 2019
Film fraternity hails Modi's
smashing victory
M
embers of the Indian film fraternity,
including veterans like Paresh
Rawal and Rajinikanth, congratulat‑
ed Prime Minister Narendra Modi as the
BJP‑led coalition registered a landslide victo‑
ry in the Lok Sabha elections.
Here's what they tweeted:
Paresh Rawal: Had said earlier and will
repeat again ‑‑ Sardar Patel had Unified India
and Narendra Modi will not let it disinte‑
grate. Relax India, we are truly in safe hands.
Rajinikanth: Respected dear Narendra
Modiji. Hearty congratulations... You made
it! God bless.
Ajay Devgn: The country knows what is
right for them and they have made their
choice.
Anil Kapoor: The nation has spoken.
Congratulations PM Narendra Modiji on the
historic win. We, the citizens, look forward
to the new heights that your leadership
Dimple Kapadia cast in
Christopher Nolan's film
V D
eteran Indian actress Dimple
Kapadia has been cast in
Christopher Nolan's action epic
"Tenet", which will also feature Robert
Pattinson and Michael Caine, and will be
shot across seven countries, including
India.
While Dimple, 61, is yet to comment on
it, celebrities from Bollywood have cheered
her on.
Anil Kapoor, who starred in American
series "24", called her casting "phenome‑
nal", while filmmaker Anurag Kashyap
tweeted wrote: "So cool... Dimple Kapadia
in a Chris Nolan Film...Wow."
Mumbai‑based talent manager Purvi
Lavingia Vats, who was instrumental in get‑
ting Ali Fazal a role in "Fast and Furious 7",
says she pitched Dimple for the role to
Nolan's casting team in Los Angeles.
"Dimple is a great and a wonderful per‑
son. She is the only Indian actor to be a
part of this project as of now. They will be
shooting the film in different countries,
and India is one of them," Vats told IANS.
Nolan's last film was "Dunkirk".
ULTIMATE BOLLYWOOD
Prime
Minister
Narendra
Modi
with the
Bollywood
brigade.
promises to take us.
Varun Dhawan: The country has decided.
Congratulations honourable Prime Minister
Narendra Modi sir on your victory. Looking
forward to the future under you guidance
and leadership where all Indians move ahead
together.
Huma Qureshi: We all voted and democra‑
cy has spoken. This is the will of the people.
Congratulations to Narendra Modi. Hope
India flourishes under your leadership.
Adnan Sami: Heartiest congratulations to
Narendra Modiji on a smashing win. I'm on a
holiday in Germany but have been glued to
the TV and Internet since early morning
with a huge smile on my face! Jai Hind!
Ashwiny Iyer Tiwari: Let my country awak‑
en to a new thought. A tomorrow of constant
reforms encompassing all shades and tints
of New India. Congratulations Prime
Minister Narendra Modiji
Actor Dimple Kapadia made her screen
debut in 1973 with the film ʻBobbyʼ.
TheSouthAsianTimes.info
Beyond the Cannes red carpet:
Where are Indian films?
A
s many as 1,854 feature films they want. We should be proud because
were submitted to be part of the people have taken India seriously in
2019 Official Selection at the terms of our cinema, our digital content...
Cannes Film Festival from across the People are watching Indian cinema in a
world this year. As many as 39 nations big way. They know our stars very well.”
are represented as production or co‑pro‑ To make inroads into such a festival,
duction countries. India is missing. Bhandarkar said it was essential that
Filmmaker Onir rightly questioned: Indian filmmakers follow the Satyajit Ray
"What are we supposed to celebrate and Ritwik Ghatak kind of cinema with
about Cannes 2019... The cinema that's "Cannes value".
being celebrated or just the clothes our Mira Nair was the first Indian to win the
actors wear and the parties they attend. Camera d'Or in Cannes for "Salaam
Somehow that is all that seems to be Bombay" in 1988. The last Indian film to
talked about." Barring the overwhelming compete for the coveted Palm D'Or at the
red carpet or party looks of Bollywood prestigious gala was Shaji N. Karun's
actresses making a splash on social "Swaham" in 1994.
media, an India Pavilion, organized by the
Ministry of Information and
Broadcasting and Ficci, is
doing its bit to forge inter‑
national partnerships
in distribution, produc‑ Actress
tion, pitch India as a Aishwarya Rai
Bachchan at
shooting destination and
the 72nd
promoting film sales and
Cannes film
syndication.
festival.
India may be one of the
largest film producers in the
world, but no film from the
country made it in the competi‑
tion categories.
National Award‑winning film‑
maker Madhur Bhandarkar, who is a
part of the government‑led delegation,
found it "unfortunate" that Indian cinema
had no presence at the gala, but said the
prerogative of the festival line‑up lies on
the jury.
"The jury decides what movies should
be shown, and we should respect what
'PM Narendra Modi': A hurriedly
mounted hagiography
By Troy Ribeiro
irector Omung Kumar's latest film
"PM Narendra Modi" is a biopic on
Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The
narrative begins with a lengthy disclaimer
which mentions it is a fictionalized piece of
work. And over the 136 minutes of its run‑
time, those who are aware of the political
scenario of the country, would agree that
this piece of work is slanted.
Blatant in its narrative, the film stacks up
the various milestones of Narendra Modi's
life and succeeds in creating a halo effect, Actor Vivek Oberoi essays the role
portraying him with a holier than thou and of PM Narendra Modi in the film.
larger than life image of 'ek Insaan' (a
human being), who rose from of the PM but fails miserably.
REVIEW
being a 'Chai Wala' (tea boy) to He is more of a caricature.
the Prime Minister of India. Also, due to the coldness in
While the plot manipulates the character, you fail to invest in him.
fiction and facts astutely, there is a huge Manoj Joshi, with a fine set of prosthetics,
disconnect in the telling, due to its false gives a nuanced performance as Amit Shah,
note. The tone is sombre and the humor Narendra Modi's right hand man.
subtle. The script lacks finesse and hence Mounted with moderate production val‑
fails as biopic. It works more like a propa‑ ues, the visuals of the film fluctuates from
ganda film. realistic to avant‑garde (while projecting
Vivek Oberoi, in the titular role, tries to Gujarat as a developed state where
capture the body language and demeanor investors should invest in) quality.
TheSouthAsianTimes.info
ʻSirʼ wins Best Film at New
York Indian Film Fest
Actors Tillotama Shome and Manoj Bajpayee.
R
ohena Gera's ʻSirʼhas won the
award for the Best Film while
actors Tillotama Shome and
Manoj Bajpayee have been adjudged best
actors at the 19th Annual New York
Indian Film Festival, which concluded
recently. ʻSirʼ, which has been widely laud‑
ed at film festival, features Tillotama with
Vivek Gomber and Geetanjali Kulkarni.
Directed by Rohena Gera, it tells a love
story of a servant and the son of her
upper‑class employer.
"For us to win best film and best actress
is completely the cherry atop a very
groovy cake. I am very grateful to the jury
and the festival," Tillotama told IANS.
'GODZILLA II...' TO NOW Wanted to give the
ARRIVE IN INDIA BEFORE US Padma Shri back: Saif
G
odzilla II: King Of The
Monsters", which was to hit the
screens in India on May 31, will
now open in the country a day early,
before its scheduled international release.
Following the global success of
"Godzilla" and "Kong: Skull Island", the
anticipation for the next chapter "Godzilla
II: King Of The Monsters" is high.
The film will release in India in English,
Hindi, Tamil and Telugu on May 30, read
a statement. After the success of
"Aquaman" last year, which came out a
The film will release in India on May 30.
ULTIMATE BOLLYWOOD
'Sir' is yet to release in India, but it may
happen soon.
Actor Manoj Bajpayee bagged the Best
Actor Award for his work in "Gali
Guleiyan" ("In the Shadows").
Acknowledging the praise and good
wishes coming to him, Manoj posted on
Twitter: "'Gali Guleiyan' gets an honor at
New York Indian Film Festival.
Congratulations to the team of and the
captain Dipesh Jain (director)."
"Gali Guleiyan" is a Hindi psychological
drama about a man trapped within the
walls and alleys of Old Delhi and his own
mind. He attempts to break free to find a
human connection.
week ahead of its international release in
the Indian territory, Warner Bros. is all set
to release "Godzilla II: King of The
Monsters" in India a day before its sched‑
uled international release.
"The call was taken recently by the mak‑
ers after witnessing the massive anticipa‑
tion for the film in the Indian markets,"
said a source.
The film stars Bobby Brown, Vera
Farmiga, Sally Hawkins, Kyle Chandler,
O'Shea Jackson Jr., Ken Watanabe and
Bradley Whitford.
June 1-7, 2019 17
Business of fitness gets a
push from Bollywood stars
T
hose uber chic gym looks and
drool‑worthy workout videos
apart, a slew of Bollywood
stars have stepped up the business
of health and fitness by either
investing in it or endorsing it, giv‑
ing the youth a kick and a push
to work towards a 'Swasth
Bharat'.
Salman Khan, Hrithik Roshan, Fitness comes first for actors
Tiger Shroff, Suniel Shetty, Shilpa Malaika Arora and Shilpa Shetty.
Shetty Kundra, Bipasha Basu,
Malaika Arora, Milind Soman and combination of various movement mod‑
Mandira Bedi are some actors ules, the Prowl Workout is a unique
who have taken it upon mix of combat, dance and functional
themselves to motivate fitness done to foot‑tapping music.
people to take a plunge Last year, Salman had acquired manu‑
into maintaining a facturing rights of fitness equipment
healthy lifestyle. company Jerai Fitness, to launch his own
Holistic integrated healthcare plat‑ gym equipment range. And just earlier
form Cure.fit collaborated with Hrithik this month, Malaika, a yoga enthusiast,
and Tiger for their passion towards had shared her excitement about investing
fitness. in an Indian yoga and wellness start‑up
"We consider our celebrities to be called SARVA.
our evangelists. Hrithik, Tiger and Milind, a Pinkathon ambassador, is also
our team together have designed, devel‑ part of a Hotstar web series "Maximise
oped and customized the workout modules Your Day", where he reveals fitness secrets
of HRX and PROWL respectively. The idea and shares wellness tips.
of developing these workout is to ensure For Shilpa, the journey to promote fit‑
access to our customers to experience the ness began a decade ago when she
high, intense and effective workouts of launched her yoga DVDs. In her latest
respective celebrities closer to the comfort endeavor, she has launched a holistic well‑
of their home," Ankit Nagori, Co‑Founder ness app called The Shilpa Shetty
of Cure.fit, told IANS. Application, replete with target‑based pro‑
While the HRX workout is a strength grams, yoga routines and diet plans for
and conditioning program which has a users.
A
ctor Saif Ali Khan, who was felici‑
tated with the Padma Shri, India's
fourth highest civilian award in
2010, says he wanted to return it.
On Arbaaz Khan's chat show "Pinch", Saif
was taken through some mean tweets
about him.
One of them read: "This two bit thug who
bought a Padma Shri, named his son
Taimur and beat up some people in a
restaurant. How the hell did he get a role
in 'Sacred Games'? He can hardly act."
Reacting to it, Saif said: "Two bit thug,
I'm not... Bought a Padma Shri is also not
possible. It is beyond me to bribe the
Indian government. You will have to ask Saif is all set to come up with the
second season of ʻSacred Gamesʼ.
more senior people. But I thought I don't
want to accept it. There are so many senior very happily took it.”
actors in the industry who deserved it even During "Pinch", Saif also had a witty
more than me, and had not gotten reply to a troll who questioned him about
one...and it was very embarassing. And of being a "nawab".
course, there are some people who have it, A troll had questioned him on "being a
I feel deserve it less than me also." nawab and still clinging on to rotten 'huku‑
Saif said he changed his mind after a mat'".
conversation with his father, the late After reading it, Saif quipped: "I have
Mansoor Ali Khan Pataudi. never been interested in being a nawab. I
"I wanted to give it back. I didn't want to prefer eating kebabs."
accept it. My father said to me, 'I don't On the work front, Saif is all set to come
think you are in a position to refuse the up with the second season of "Sacred
Indian government.' So I said 'okay' and I Games".
 18 June 1-7, 2019 ENVIRONMENT TheSouthAsianTimes.info

Giant replica of Climate change

earth on display affecting developing
in Britain nations most: UN
Addis Ababa: United Nations officials last
London: A 23 ft replica of the earth Wednesday said developing nations were
went on display at the Liverpool facing the brunt of climate change despite
Cathedral, Britain's biggest church. their little contribution to the problem.
Following its display in Hong Kong, A joint statement was made by Mary
the artwork is on exhibit in the cathe‑ Robinson, Ireland's former President and
dral in Liverpool until June 23. It was UN Special Envoy on El Nino and Climate,
created by British artist Luke Jerram and Executive Secretary of the UN Economic
with detailed NASA satellite imagery of Commission for Africa (ECA) Vera Songwe
the earth's surface, reports Xinhua news during a climate‑focused meeting in Addis extremely profitable economy. It's an econo‑
agency. Ababa, the Ethiopian capital. my that will create more jobs and leave us
"It's an opportunity to see our planet Robinson said, "those who suf fer the cleaner and better," Songwe said.
floating above your head in Liverpool worst ef fects of climate change are often Mithika Mwenda, Executive Director of
Cathedral," a spokesperson for the the least responsible for it". the Pan African Justice Alliance, said during
cathedral said on Saturday. She called for the need for climate justice the discussion climate justice was not get‑
The 3D installation, also known as as the least responsible countries suffer the ting the priority it deserved from govern‑
Gaia, rotates once every four minutes, most from the global threat that emanated ments.
360 times faster than the real planet. from climate change, Xinhua news agency "Africa is most affected and impacted by
During certain times of the day, a spe‑ reported. climate change, but we don't do much about
cial surround sound composed by multi‑ Robinson was appointed UN Special Envoy it. We need strong governance systems to
award winning composer Dan Jones will along with Macharia Kamau of Kenya in move the climate discourse and actions for‑
be played. 2016 to provide the leadership required to ward," he said.
Liverpool's Deputy Mayor Wendy tackle climate‑related challenges. ECA's He urged the ECA to fortify collaboration
Simon said: "The environment and cli‑ Songwe said the African continent could with the African Union and the African
mate change is high on the news agen‑ leverage to its advantage in the global fight Development Bank in line with the ClimDev‑
da and as well as being stunning to look against the impacts of climate change. Africa program that's mandated by African
at, Gaia is a thought‑provoking piece of The 3D installation, also known as Gaia, rotates "We didn't create it, but we can profit the leaders to create a solid foundation for
art which will allow us to appreciate the once every four minutes, 360 times faster than most from it. A climate smart economy is an
the real planet. Africa's response to climate change.
fragility of the world we live in."
TheSouthAsianTimes.info OP-ED June 1-7, 2019 19

Triumph of BJP's Hindu nationalist card

By Amulya Ganguli the Sabarimala issue. of the "idea of India" or a multicultural
In Odisha and Punjab, the BJP came up nation can appear as a watery concept

A
n electoral face‑of f between a reli‑
gious/nationalist party and a gaggle of
vaguely Left‑Liberal outfits was an
unequal contest.
For the "bleeding heart" liberals, which is
how they are mocked by their opponents, it is
dif ficult to counter the emotive appeal of
faith and love for the motherland espoused by
the right‑wing.
Surely a major factor behind BJPʼs victory
in this general election was its championing
of the nationalist cause with a touch of jingo‑
ism, especially in the aftermath of the
Pulwama massacre and the subsequent air
strikes in Balakot.
There is also a hidden subtext behind the
BJP's portrayal of Pakistan as the mortal
enemy, relating to the loyalty of the Indian
Muslims. Confronted with a challenge which
links external threats with internal enemies,
the BJP's opponents had little chance.
If the BJP faced resistance in the outer
peripheries of the country like Tamil Nadu,
Odisha and Kerala, a possible reason was that
the pro‑Hindu pitch had little traction there,
especially in Tamil Nadu with its atheist tradi‑
tion represented by the Dravidian parties, and
in Kerala with its Leftist background, which
remained impervious to the BJP's ploys on
against "strong" local leaders like Naveen
Patnaik and Capt. Amarinder Singh. Yet, the
BJP succeeded in replacing a steadily weaken‑
ing Congress as the state's main opposition
party.
In West Bengal, Chief Minister Mamata
Banerjee partly succumbed to the BJP's Hindu
card because of her own follies relating to the
perception of being pro‑Muslim and a failure
to revive the state's industries.
Overall, there is very little in the political
kitty of the Congress and other non‑BJP par‑
ties which can present a convincing alterna‑
tive narrative at the moment.
Even relatively minor suggestions in the
Congress manifesto like diluting the Armed
Forces (Special Powers) Act and dispensing
with the colonial‑era sedition laws are liable
to be seized upon by the Hindu Right as evi‑
dence of the role which the Left‑Liberals can
play in weakening the security forces and
allowing the traitorous elements ‑ the so‑
called 'tukde tukde' gang ‑ to flourish.
Home Minister Rajnath Singh, on the other
hand, has pledged to strengthen the sedition
laws even further.
While the BJP may firm up the mix of reli‑
gion, patriotism and national security with
more draconian laws, the Congress's espousal
which dilutes India's Hindu identity.
True, the Congress's pursuit of secu‑
larism was marred by missteps like
negating the Supreme Court's judg‑
ment in the mid‑1980s in favor of a
divorced Muslim woman, thereby sub‑
stantiating the BJP's argument that
secularism to the Congress was tanta‑
mount to appeasing the Muslims.
The success of the BJP's propaganda
in this respect has persuaded the
Congress leaders to take to visiting
temples and holding massive yagnas,
as by Digvijay Singh in Bhopal which
could not save him from defeat at the To counter the BJP's propaganda that Congress
hands of the BJP's Sadhvi Pragya was appeasing the Muslims, Congress leaders
Thakur. An imitation does not have the took to visiting temples and holding yagnas,
same value as the genuine article. But imitation is not as good as the original.
It is this kind of a see‑saw from coherent ideology, other non‑BJP parties
Muslim "appeasement" to parroting the BJP's remain mired in caste and localism without
Hindu rituals which has made the Congress any pan‑Indian vision. The BJP scores on all
appear to be at sixes and sevens where its ide‑ these points ‑ a strident pro‑Hindu ideology
ology is concerned. which promises to cement India's place as a
Nor is there anyone in the party with the major power.
intellectual wherewithal to clarify that secu‑ Even if the BJP's macro‑economic outlook is
larism does not mean favoring any communi‑ unclear at present, unlike in 2014, it never‑
ty at the expense of the others, but to treat all theless expects to ride high with its national‑
equally and fairly. ist agenda, aided and abetted by a weak oppo‑
If the Congress is unable to formulate a sition.

Carter chastises Trump: 'US most warlike nation in history'

By Saeed Naqvi Germans don't like being stood intelligence does it have and what
up. Negative German vibrations is its agenda?

Y
ou may not have noticed
it, but Americaʼs war with
Iran started some days
ago, and may not be going too
well for the worldʼs mightiest
power. This is not a war that
President Trump, as Commander‑
in‑Chief, is enthusiastic about.
The eager beavers, the trigger
happy foursome lurching towards
war are what Iranʼs Foreign
Minister Javad Zarif describes as
Trumps "B" team ‑ Bibi
Netanyahu, John Bolton, bin
Salman and bin Zayed.
There are military strategists
who fear that Israel too may at
this moment be in a chastened
mood. It may be nursing wounds
recently inflicted by the missile
barrage from Hamas on the first
day of Ramadan. Of course,
Israelis retaliated fiercely but
why did this exchange not devel‑
op into a major pummeling of
Gaza? It appears the Gazans, with
help from Hezbullah and Iran,
have assembled ingenious devices
which can penetrate what was
advertised as an invincible missile
defense system. The, system, Iron
Dome, has been manufactured by
Rafael Advanced Defense Systems
and Israel aerospace Industries.
For Israeli Military Elite, the
Iron Dome's vulnerability is as
unnerving as the destruction of
the "world's most invincible
Merkava tank" by Hezbullah in an
U.S. President Donald Trump. (File Photo: IANS)
earlier engagement inspiring the
New York Times to a memorable
headline: "Israel is powerful, Yes.
But not so invincible."
Iron Dome's alleged vulnerabili‑
ty must inspire caution. It may
well be seen as a restraining fac‑
tor, one that would cause the bel‑
ligerents to hold back their hors‑
es. And horses have been pulled
back by the Arab B team. After all,
two Saudi tankers were hit off the
coast of Fujairah. And what was
the B team's response? Silence.
If this were not sufficient
provocation, the embattled
Houthis in Yemen shocked the
Saudis by hitting and disabling
their oil facility in Saudi Arabia
not by a missile but a drone
which dodged the radar and
struck key Saudi oil installations.
Saudi's have taken revenge by
bombing the Yemeni capital, the
ancient city of Sanaa. Diplomatic
grapevine is abuzz that Riyadh
has communicated to their US
interlocutors that the latest
bombing was part of their ongo‑
ing war with Yemen. Iran was not
in the bargain.
Meanwhile, Secretary of State,
Mike Pompeo, turned up in
Brussels expecting to be kissed
on both his cheeks by European
leaders for having set up a show‑
down with Tehran. He had proba‑
bly forgotten that just last week
he had ditched Angela Merkel
after having set up a meeting in
Berlin, his first with the German
leadership.
must have reached Brussels. But
this was not the only reason for
the cold reception Pompeo
received. Of course, there were no
takers for tightening the screws
on Iran. There was on the other
hand, great concern that
President Hassan Rouhani had, on
the anniversary of Trump backing
away from their commitment to
the nuclear deal, indicated that
Iran would begin to dismantle the
agreement too if Europeans did
not hold their nerve in the face of
US bullying.
It hurts the US most when their
cousins across the Atlantic begin
to chastise them. UK Foreign
Secretary, Jeremy Hunt, echoed
the mood in Brussels. "We are
very worried about the risks of a
conflict by accident." The interna‑
tional community is on edge
because it has a sense of history.
The First World War was acciden‑
tally triggered when Archduke
Ferdinand was shot dead in
Sarajevo by a Serbian militant.
Conversation veers around to
anxieties on these lines after US
intelligence spotted missiles on
small boats placed by the Iranian
Revolutionary Guards. The diffi‑
culty in reading the Iranians at
this point is two‑fold: is this esca‑
lation by Iran or a defensive move
on its part? Even more worrying
is a huge question mark on the
reliability of the Deep State: what
Time was when CIA had a repu‑
tation for well processed intelli‑
gence data, but the record all
along has been mixed. How many
times has the CIA misled the
administration? Did not the US
intelligence say with great
authority during the Korean War
that China will not cross the Yalu
River? It did. Neither the Soviets
no the Chinese will help Vietnam.
They did. Assad will go. Has he?
Maduro will go. Has he
gone?......the list is inexhaustible.
Trump should feel a little hum‑
bled by President Jimmy Carter's
description of the US "as the most
warlike nation in the history of
the world", Carter revealed in the
course of a talk in his Church in
Plains, Georgia, a recent exchange
with Trump. President Trump
expressed his anxiety to Carter
about "China's growing econo‑
my". He was anxious: "China is
getting ahead of us." Carter
replied "since 1979 China has
been at war with nobody, and we
have stayed at war." In Carter's
words there may be something
for New Delhi to ponder too. Also,
a sensible power would balance
its relations with others and not
give any nation the right to veto
relations with Iran which all
Prime Minister including the
BJP's Atal Behari Vajpayee have
consistently considered India's
natural ally.
 20 June 1-7, 2019
Indian climbers killed in the
Everest 'traffic jam'
Kathmandu: Two Indians died on
Mount Everest due to hours‑long
"traffic jam", just days after expe‑
dition leaders and the Nepal gov‑
ernment claimed overcrowding on
the world's tallest mountain was
not a worry.
Indian climber Kalpana Das, 49,
reached the summit, but died
while descending as a large num‑
ber of climbers queued near the
top. She was a member of the
"T hree Women Expedit ion",
Gyanendra Shrestha, a liaison offi‑
cer at the Everest base camp was
cited as saying by the Himalayan
Times.
Another Indian climber, 27‑
year‑old Nihal Bagwan from
Maharashtra, died on his return
from the summit. Babu Sherpa,
Manag ing Director at Peak
Promotion Pvt Ltd, said Bagwan
breathed his last at Camp IV on
the Everest on the Nepal side after
he was rescued by a group of
Sherpas.
Sushma, Qureshi Families demand return of
exchange pleasantries missing relatives in Bangladesh
Bishkek: External Affairs Minister
Sushma Swaraj and her Pakistani
counterpart Shah Mehmood
Qureshi exchanged pleasantries
on the sidelines of SCO meeting
here and were seated next to each
other during an interaction with
Kyrgyz President amid strain in
ties between the two countries
following the Pulwama terror
attack . MEA sources said that
there was no meeting and only
exchange of pleasantries between
the two leaders.
Both the leaders attended the
meeting of the Shanghai
Cooperation Organisation's (SCO)
Council of Foreign Ministers
(CFM).
Pakistan media outlet the
Dawn, however, said that Qureshi
and Swaraj held "an informal dia‑
logue" on the sidelines of ASCO
meeting.
"Today [I] met Sushma Ji. She
had a complaint that we some‑
times talk in a bitter manner. She
brought sweets today so we could
also speak sweetly," Qureshi was
quoted as saying by the Foreign
Office, according to the Dawn.
"We made it clear to her that
we want all the matters resolved
through dialogue, and that Prime
Minister Imran Khan had said in
his very first speech that if India
takes one step forward, we would
take two steps forward. Even
A "traffic jam" occurs on the Everest when many climbers
vie for the summit at the same time.
"The climber died at Camp IV
after he fell ill near the balcony
area while returning from the
summit," Sherpa said and added
Bagwan was the leader of a two‑
Pakistan Foreign Minister
Shah Mehmood Qureshi.
today we are ready for a dia‑
logue," he was quoted as saying.
Tensions between India and
Pakistan increased after the
Pulwama terror attack in
February in which 40 Central
Reserve Police Force personnel
were killed. Pakistan‑based Jaish‑
e‑Mohammed (JeM) had taken
responsibility for the attack. India
had later carried out air strikes at
a terror camp in Balakot in
Pakistan.
The exchange of pleasantries
between the two leaders took
place at a time when India is
awaiting results of its general
elections. Both countries are
expected to look for a thaw in
bilateral relationship after a new
government assumes office in
Delhi.
SUBCONTINENT
member expedition.
Their deaths were attributed
primarily to a long queue of both
ascending and descending
climbers, forcing many to wait for
Dhaka: Family members of hun‑
dreds of people who disappeared
between 2009 and 2019 in
Bangladesh, took to the streets in
the Bang ladeshi capital on
Saturday demanding the authori‑
ties to return their re latives
immediately.
Local human rights defenders,
members of the civil society and
academic scholars expressed sol‑
idarity with the families during a
human chain protest in front of
the National Press Club.
Mayer Dak (Mother's Call, in
English), a platform of the moth‑
ers of disappeared people, organ‑
ized the protest as part of the
Internat ional Wee k of
Disappeared, which is being
observed from Saturday, Efe
Lanka House panel to probe
Easter Sunday attacks
Colombo: Sri Lanka Parliament
Speaker Karu Jayasuriya has set
up a special panel to probe the
April 21 Easter Sunday terror
attacks, which claimed over 250
lives, authorities said here.
The special committee, to be
headed by Deputy Speaker
Ananda Kumarasiri, will have
seven legislators as members,
TheSouthAsianTimes.info
hours at 8,000 metres plus alti‑
tudes. A 65‑year‑old Austrian
climber, meanwhile, died on the
northern Tibet side of the moun‑
tain. Earlier this week, Anjali
Kulkarni (India), 55, and Donald
Lynn Cash (USA), 55, died on the
mountain. The woman's expedi‑
t ion agency, Arun Tre ks and
Expedit ions, said she died of
"exhaustion".
T he American climber died
while descending from the sum‑
mit, 15 metres below the Hillary
Step, which stands at 8,790
metres. "He died of altitude sick‑
ness as he had lost energy," said
Pasang Tenje Sherpa, chairman of
Pioneer Adventure, the climber's
expedition agency.
Also, an Irish mountaineer is
presumed to have died after he
slipped and fell close to the sum‑
mit on May 16. Indian climber
Ravi Thakar died while returning
from the summit last week.
A "traf fic jam" occurs on the
news reported.
Adiba Islam was one of the par‑
ticipants in the human chain. She
was just two when her father
Pervez Hossain disappeared on
December 8, 2013.
"I want to go to school with my
father. I am getting old, if he
does not come back when I will
go to school w ith him," said
Adiba, the President of a local
unit of the student wing of the
Bangladesh Nationalist Party.
Adiba's mother, Farzana Akter,
said that a group of people iden‑
tifying themselves as members of
a detective branch of the police
force took her husband away
from the Shahbag area of Dhaka.
"We went to all law‑enforcing
agencies but none admitted
reports Xinhua news agency.
The committee would conduct
an independent probe into the ter‑
ror attacks and report its findings
to Parliament, Speaker Jayasuriya
said.
As many as 89 suspects, arrest‑
ed for their alleged links with the
attacks, were under the custody of
the Criminal Invest ig at ions
Everest when many climbers vie
for the summit at the same time
and can be especially dangerous
above 8,000 metres, called the
"Death Zone".
The last steep challenge before
the summit o ccurs after the
Hillary Step ‑‑ a vertical rock face
at 8,790 metres ‑‑ which many
climbers said was dislodged in the
2015 earthquake.
In a "traf fic jam", exhausted
climbers are often forced to wait
for several hours for their turn to
ascend or descend on a single
rope, increasing risks of exhaus‑
tion, frostbite or altitude sickness.
Climbers could also run out of
oxygen.
The number of people climbing
Everest in 2019 could exceed last
year's record of 807 people reach‑
ing the summit, officials said. The
rising numbers of people climb‑
ing, and dying, on the Everest has
led for calls for permits to be
limited.
arresting him. I was pregnant
when my husband disappeared.
Now my son is six years old but
he is yet to see his father," said
Akter.
Shafiqur Rahman said his son
Saifur Rahman, a BNP leader,
disappeared on February 18,
2015.
"He was the only earning mem‑
ber of our family. Now my grand‑
son asks me every day when his
father will be back," he said.
At least 92 people were
believed to have been subjected
to an enforced disappearance by
the authorities in 2018 ‑ bring‑
ing the total number of cases of
enforced disappearances docu‑
mented since the beginning of
2009 to 507.
Department and the Terrorism
Investigations Department, the
police said.
T he Islamist group National
T howheed Jamaath (NTJ ) has
been blamed for the attacks. It is
believed to have links with the
Islamic State terror group that
claimed the April 21 Easter
Sunday bombings.
TheSouthAsianTimes.info INTERNATIONAL June 1-7, 2019 21

Trump, Japanese Emperor China leading globally

pledge to boost cooperation in app development:
Tokya: The US and Japan
on Monday pledged to
Apple China chief
cont inue and expand Beijing: Ten years after US tech giant Apple Inc Shanghai and Suzhou, employing a total of
cooperat ion during a launched its App Store, the number of Chinese over 1,000 people dedicated to innovation in
state dinner hosted by developers tops 2.2 million and they have hardware, software and services, Ge said. The
newly‑crowned Japanese become a leading force in app development, Apple China chief also hailed the smooth
Emperor Naruhito in said Apple's China chief. progress of the construction of Apple's first
honor of American "Chinese app developers are China data centre in Guiyang,
President Donald Trump leading the world in terms of app adding that Apple had received
during the latter's of fi‑ downloads and revenue, and have tremendous support from the local
cial visit to the Asian grown to be a very admirable com‑ government in the project. Jointly
country. munity of innovators," Isabel Ge built by Apple and Guizhou‑Cloud
The dinner, hosted at Mahe (Ge Yue), Apple's Vice Big Data Company, the Guizhou
the Imperial Palace by President and Managing Director facility, with a budget of 1 billion
Emperor Naruhito at the of Greater China, told Xinhua on US dollars, began construction in
end of a day full of politi‑ the sideline of the China March. It will be Apple's third
cal meetings for Trump, International Big Data Industry Isabel Ge Mahe after the data centres in the US
Expo 2019 on Sunday. "Through (Ge Yue), Apple's and Denmark.
was also attended by
Prime Minister Shinzo President Donald Trump (left) with Emperor Naruhito during Apple's App Store, their products Vice President and From February 28 last year,
Managing Director
Abe and around 180 the state dinner hosted at Imperial Palace in Tokyo. have entered the global stage and Apple's iCloud services on the
of Greater China
other guests. The men many of them have become suc‑ Chinese mainland started to be
other areas of shared promise," said the US
were dressed in tuxedos and the women cessful cases internationally." She citied the operated by Guizhou‑Cloud Big Data Company,
leader.
were wearing gala dresses or striking global success of short video sharing app a move Ge said helped provide better services
The other invitees included the top politi‑
kimonos, Efe news reported. TikTok, also known as Douyin in China, and for Chinese Apple users.
cal leaders of the country and members of
At the beginning of the banquet, both the apps developed by China's Palace Museum, She reiterated Apple's long‑time commit‑
the royal family.
Naruhito and Trump toasted the cooperation as examples of China's innovative ability. ment in protecting users' privacy and data
The French‑inspired menu at the banquet
between the two allies. TikTok has 75 language versions and is liked security. "There is absolutely no so‑called back‑
included Consomme a la Royale, Turbot a la
"I sincerely hope that... the peoples of our by users from over 150 countries and regions, door in Apple products," said Ge. "Protecting
Meuniere Sauce Tomate, Cote de Boeuf
two countries will continue to contribute to while the 11 apps developed by the Palace privacy is our top priority in designing Apple
Rotie, Salade de Saison, Glace Mont Fuji and
peace and prosperity in the world to bring Museum have been downloaded by over 5 mil‑ products and services." Apple has also been an
a dessert of melon and grapes.
about a future filled with hope, all the while lion users across the world. She said Apple's active promoter of using digital technology in
The state dinner marked the end of the
further expanding the scope of our coopera‑ China team had taken a series of steps to bridging the gap in educational resources and
day's agenda for Trump, who had arrived on
tion and deepening our unwavering bond," encourage home‑grown apps to go global and aiding China's fight against poverty, according
Saturday as the first foreign leader to be
Naruhito said, according to state broadcast‑ used its experience and resources to help pro‑ to Ge. In 2018, Apple launched a programme
received by Emperor Naruhito, who ascend‑
er NHK. mote them to the global market. to provide digitalised pre‑school and vocation‑
ed the throne on May 1 after the abdication
Trump, wearing an unfastened tuxedo, "In the area of mobile Internet, China has al education to students in less developed
of his father, Akihito.
said he was carrying the American people's become a spotlight of the world," Ge said. "We areas in China, with a donation of 25 million
Trump concluded his Japan visit on
expectations for the treasured bilateral are proud to make our contributions to China yuan ($3.7 million) to the China Development
Tuesday after commemorating American
alliance. "We embrace the limitless potential in this digital age and work with Chinese part‑ Research Foundation.
military personnel who died in service at a
now before us: to cooperate on new fron‑ ners for innovative development in the indus‑ "We firmly believe that education is the best
US military base south of Tokyo and visiting
tiers of technology, space, infrastructure, try." Apple has launched four R&D centers in way to improve people's livelihoods and tackle
a Japanese helicopter carrier.
defence, commerce, diplomacy and many the Chinese cities of Beijing, Shenzhen, inequalities in development," Ge said.
‑IANS

Power blocs lose grip on European Parliament

Brussels: The big centre‑right and
centre‑left blocs in the European
Parliament have lost their com‑
bined majority as voters turned
out in record numbers to bolster
radical alternatives, including the
Greens and the far‑right, in the
European Parliamentary elections,
according to media reports on
Monday.
Pro‑EU parties were still expect‑
ed to be in a majority in the
Sunday elections, but the tradi‑
tional blocs would need to seek
new alliances, the BBC reported.
The European Parliament helps
shape the EU legislation. It's made
up of 751 members, called MEPs,
directly e lected by EU voters
every five years. These MEPs rep‑
resent the interests of citizens of
the EU's 28 member states.
The results will play a big part
in who gets the key jobs in the EU
institutions, including Jean‑Claude
Juncker's replacement as the
European Commission President.
The makeup of Parliament will
be used by the 28 heads of state
and government to guide their
choice of replacement for Juncker
and his counterpart in the
European Council, Donald Tusk.
Parliament will have a veto over
any choice of the commission
President and on the whole of the
new commission team.
The estimated results, based on
exit polls, leave the centre‑right
European People's Party (EPP) as
the largest in Parliament, but
down from 221 seats to 179.
Analysts say it's likely to form a
grand coalition with the Socialists
and Democrats bloc, with support
from the Liberals and the Greens.
T he So cialists and the
Democrats looked set to drop to
150 seats from 191. The Liberals
and the Greens also received big
gains, while the nationalists were
set for victory in Italy and France.
There were major successes for
the Greens, with exit polls sug‑
gesting the group could jump
from 50 to 67 MEPs.
In the UK, the newly‑formed
Brexit Party claimed a big victory
and a strong performance by the
Liberal Democrats came amid
massive losses for the
Conservatives and the Labour.
The populists gained ground in
some countries, but fell short of
the significant gains some had
predicted.
The turnout on Sunday bucked a
long trend of decline in voter
numbers, rising to just under 51
per cent across the EU.
Pro‑EU parties are still expected
to hold a majority of seats howev‑
er, largely due to gains made by
the liberal alliance of the Liberals
and Democrats bloc, and particu‑
larly a decision taken by the party
of French President Emmanuel
Macron to join the group, the BBC
said.
His Renaissance alliance was
defeated by the far‑right National
Rally of Marine Le Pen.
In Germany, both major centrist
part ies suf fered. Chance llor
Ange la Merke l's Christ ian
Democrats dropped from 35 per
cent of the vote in 2014 to 28 per
cent, while the centre‑left Social
Democratic Union fell from 27
per cent to 15.5 per cent.
T he rig ht‑w ing populist
Alternative für Deutschland (AfD)
performed worse than expected.
It's projected in exit polls to win
10.5 per cent.
In Hung ary, Viktor Orban,
whose anti‑immigration Fidesz
party claimed 52 per cent of the
vote and 13 of the country's 21
seats, was also a big winner.
In Spain, the ruling Socialist
party took a clear lead with 32.8
per cent of the vote and 20 seats,
while the far‑right Vox party won
just 6.2 per cent vote and three
seats.
In Greece, Prime Minister Alexis
Tsipras called for an early election
after the opposition conservative
New Democracy party won 33.5
per cent votes to 20 per cent for
his Syriza party.
 22 June 1-7, 2019 BUSINESS TheSouthAsianTimes.info

NARESH GOYAL, WIFE Cognizant to layoff about

OFFLOADED FROM
LONDON FLIGHT
Former Jet Airways chief promoter Naresh Goyal
and wife Anita (Image courtesy: ddnews. gov.in)
Mumbai: Former Jet Airways chief
promoter Naresh Goyal and his
wife Anita were offloaded from a
London‑bound flight and barred
from leaving India by immigration
of ficials, sources said here on
Saturday. The duo had boarded the
Emirates EK‑507 flight and the air‑
craft was recalled after it had
already reached the taxiway and
preparing for take‑of f from
Chhatrapat i Shivaji Maharaj
International Airport.
They were taken into custody by
the Mumbai Airport Immigration
for investigations, and the reasons
for the action was not clear.
Despite repeated attempts, of fi‑
cials at Jet Airways and Emirates
Airways refused to comment and
details were awaited.
Recently, some lawmakers had
demanded that the Mumbai Police
should impound the passports of
Goyal and other senior officials of
the beleaguered airlines to prevent
them from leaving the country.
(IANS)
300 top executives
Mumbai: To keep the pyramid lean
to improve its margins and acceler‑
ate revenue growth, Cognizant
would be laying of f at least 300
top executives. The NASDAQ listed
company is said to have identified
executives it will layof f in India,
the US and other geographies, as
per the report.
T he company has init iated
rationalization of its top deck with
a ʻvoluntary separationʼ program at
the director level and above for
June. The program involves a gen‑
erous severance payout of up to a
yearʼs salary and other stock bene‑
fits based on the respective tenures
of the employees leaving the com‑
Fiat Chrysler confirms merger
talks with Renault
F
iat Chrysler has made a
“transformative merger”
proposal to French peer
Renault, the Italian carmaker
said on Monday, in a deal which
would create a world leader and
help address some of the weak‑
pany. The voluntary separation
program is for around 300 execu‑
tives from about 3,00,400 execu‑
tives holding the title of a director,
including assistant vice‑presidents
and VPs. And as per the report,
these executives have already been
identified from various geogra‑
phies including, India and the U.S.
These senior executives would be
counseled and of fered outplace‑
ment services as well.
The new CEO is taking a two‑
pronged approach̶strengthening
execution and improving the cost
structure. These layoffs seem to be
a consequence of such an
approach.
nesses in both Renault and Fiat.
Fiat said the combined busi‑
ness would be 50 percent owned
by FCA shareholders and 50 per
cent owned by those of Renault.
Pressure for consolidat ion
among carmakers has grown
A few weeks back Cognizant had
announced that the job cuts will be
focused on the middle levels, but
now even the top executives will be
laid off. When the company shared
the realignment program in early
May, is said that its headcount
growth has outstripped revenue
growth in the past two quarters.
And job cuts seem to be of the
ʻpyramid actionsʼ for lowering the
cost of delivery.
The IT company looks forward to
focus on getting fit for growth and
providing opportunities for growth
to their more than 285,000 associ‑
ates around the globe.
(Source: peoplematters.in)
with the challenges posed by
electrification, tightening emis‑
sions regulations and expensive
new technologies being devel‑
oped for connected and
autonomous vehicles.
(Source: Reuters)

Incremental reforms a must do for the next government

By Taponeel Mukherjee Incremental reforms refer to a understanding of the impact of the policy
change on the ecosystem and the related sup‑

A
s the new government takes office, it is
time to reflect on some of the most crit‑
ical areas that need attention to boost
the investment and business climate in India.
While structural reforms around land acquisi‑
tion and labor laws remain on the top of the
agenda, the new government would do well to
focus on implementing incremental policy
changes and addressing gaps in the various
sectors that would significantly boost the
investment climate.
Incremental reforms refer to a slew of small‑
er steps that help facilitate investment into the
critical areas of financial services, energy,
transportation and real estate amongst others.
In an economy of the size, diversity and com‑
plexity of India, facilitating change through
incremental steps has a significant role to play.
Smaller steps will allow the government to
gauge the effect of policy changes through a
feedback mechanism, which in turn will assist
the government in improving and altering the
policy, when required, in the right direction.
Changes and tweaks to policy in India will have
a significant multiplier effect in an economy of
the size of India. True that comprehensive
structural reforms have the advantage of being
"big bang" events, but incremental policy
changes can be game changers once their
effect is viewed over an extended period. It is
vital that incremental is not confused with
"small".
The government must continue on the path
of improvement for strategies that have yield‑
ed positive results over the last few years, like
the transparent auction mechanism for renew‑
able energy, newly introduced Infrastructure
slew of smaller steps that
help facilitate investment
into the critical areas of
financial services, energy,
transportation and real estate
amongst others. The new
Modi government would do
well to focus on
implementing incremental
policy changes and
addressing gaps in the
various sectors that would
significantly boost the
investment climate.
Investment Trust (InvIT ) mechanism for
fundraising, and auctions to monetize infra‑
structure assets. These innovative and success‑
ful policy changes must continue, and more
importantly, the learnings from these must be
applied to other sectors.
For instance, can the government bring fur‑
ther clarity around auction rules, revenue shar‑
ing, and asset sales to help India boost energy
exploration in India, especially in the light of
India's increasing dependence on Petroleum,
Oil and Lubricant (POL) imports? Could the
first Toll‑Operate‑Transfer (TOT) highway auc‑
tion conducted by the NHAI lay a template to
boost infrastructure fundraising in other sec‑
tors for the government? These are questions
worth pondering over by the government.
The government needs to evaluate reasons
that might be currently hindering the invest‑
ment process. A slowdown in the investment
process is not necessarily a problem if done for
the right reasons. But, for instance, in sectors
where a slowdown has been seen such as a
series of auctions in renewable energy that did
not find takers and the liquidity crisis that the
NBFC sector is facing, there needs to be a
reassessment of existing policy. But the aim
must not be to just tide over the current issues
but to create mechanisms that improve the sys‑
tem to reduce and eventually avoid the prob‑
lem going forward.
In some cases, such as renewable energy,
allowing market‑pricing arrangements might
be the solution, while in others such as lending
markets, transparency might be the solution.
Necessarily, adjustments in existing policies to
eliminate bottlenecks must be a government
objective to attract and boost investments.
Then, it is essential that as policy changes
are implemented, the government has its eye
on the "rear‑view mirror", primarily, for an
ply chains which are vital. Most policy changes,
if not all, have winners and losers. It is crucial
that the overall impact is positive, with the
downside reduced significantly, and more
importantly, a strategy addresses the stake‑
holders facing the downside.
Having an eye on the "rear‑view mirror" also
implies the need for the government to be
mindful of the ripple ef fects that policy
changes cause to ensure policy consistency.
For instance, whether it is access to credit for
businesses and individuals or rapid infrastruc‑
ture creation, policy changes must try to
remain as consistent with the overall objective
as possible. If the government considers
renewable energy development as a vital area
that needs focus, then duties on solar module
imports probably need a relook. Primarily,
with limited resources, it is challenging to
boost all areas. The government, thus, needs to
push for policy changes that help boost areas
with the maximum multiplier effect.
While large‑scale structural reforms can
transform economies, in an Indian context,
incremental policy changes in the right direc‑
tion have the potential to yield significant
results. While speed is of the essence, speed
must not be at the cost of precision. Therefore,
gradual but well thought‑out policy moves are
the need of the hour. In the tortoise‑hare story,
India would do well to be the patient tortoise
even as it dynamically transforms its economy.
(The views expressed are personal. Taponeel
Mukherjee heads Development Tracks, an
infrastructure advisory firm. He is reachable at
taponeel.mukherjee@development‑tracks.com
or @Taponeel on Twitter)
TheSouthAsianTimes.info
LAGAAN: THE WORLD IN CRICKET
AND THE CRICKETING WORLD
By Shivaji Sengupta
To see a World in a Grain
of Sand...
‑William Blake
I
n 2001, the film Lagaan was
released in India: a story about
British colonial misrule, fore‑
fronting an unlikely victory in a
cricket match against an English
team by a village outfit who had
never even heard of cricket, never
mind play it. The year was 1893,
eighteen years before any Indian
team had actually beaten the
British in any major sport. Mohun
Bagan football club of Calcutta, its
players playing the I.F.A. Shield
final in bare feet, achieved that
feat ag ainst East Yorkshire
Regiment in 1911.
Fast‑forward (from 1893) to
ninety years later, 1983. In the
Cricket World Cup in England –
the third of its kind – India was lit‑
erally 100‑1 odds against to win
the Cup; so much so that David
Firth, the English editor of Wisden
Cricket Monthly, wrote in an edito‑
rial before the tournament began
that not only would India not win
the Cup, they should be made to
qualify for future World Cups.
India won the tournament by beat‑
ing the defending champions, the
West Indies at the Lords Cricket
Ground. Indian cricket lovers like
India and other teamsʼ chances at the World Cup
By Yajurvindra Singh
T
he two most dif ficult jobs
in India are that of the
Prime Minister and the
Indian cricket team captain. The
saf fron colors of the BJP under
the leadership of Narendra Modi,
has won handsomely in the elec‑
tions. Amid the celebrations of
BJP's emphat ic triumph, the
Indian captain, Virat Kohli, along
with his entourage headed to the
UK to take part in the World Cup.
India, who are presently ranked
the No 2 side in ODIs, are one of
the strong favorites to lift the Cup.
The millions of young Indian
cricket supporters have been
brought‑up on the image of the
smiling Kapil Dev lifting the tro‑
phy at the Lords balcony in 1983
and are now 36 years later,
dreaming of seeing the suave
Kohli do the same.
In cricket, victory in the World
Cup has become the ult imate
prize. A grueling six weeks of
intense cricket with the first mile‑
stone of qualifying in the last four
is the aim of all the 10 sides par‑
myse lf may remember an
(in)famous cricket aftermath of
that famous victory: at the “order”
of a New Jersey Indian‑American,
Mr. Man Singh, Mr. David Firth lit‑
erally ate the paper he wrote his
editorial on, words and all.
Lagaan and the 1983 World Cup:
two events, one fictitious and one
real, both emphasize the sheer
determination and self‑pride that
India was made of.
But are they still? Certainly,
there has been plenty of success.
Since that year, there have been
eight more World Cups. India have
made either the semi‑finals or the
finals in five of those, winning in
2011 in Sachin Tendulkarʼs last
game in World Cups. Its players
regularly make the list of the ten
best in the world in the gameʼs var‑
ious categories. Virat Kohli, Indiaʼs
captain, is the number one batter
in both Test and ODIs. Jasprit
Singh Bhumra is the number one
ODI bowler in the world. England
and India (ranked number 2 in ODI
cricket) are expected to reach the
finals of this World Cup also being
played in England, a country that
ruled and dominated India – often
cruelly – for almost 200 years.
But Lag aan hearkens back‑
wards. If that film was about the
cruelty of the British in India,
about what a mighty power should
ticipating. The new format of play‑
ing each other once is such that
none of the teams
can lower their
guard in even
one of the
matches.
T he con‑
sistency
that the
Indian side
has shown
over the
past two
years and the
superiority
against the likes of Afghanistan,
Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, West Indies
and New Zealand should give
them the confidence to beat these
teams once again.
The good and the bad of the
Indian World Cup team has been
analyzed and scrutinized by one
and all.
India has a strong top order bat‑
ters and with Kohli heading the
list as the leading batsman in
world cricket, it will take some
very good bowling for most teams
to keep the trio from notching‑up
SPORTS
Let us not become arrogant of our team’s
superiority and remember Lagaan,
remember where we, as a country, and as a
cricketing nation, have come from.
not do when they become mighty, is the Indian people, drunk with a
and, alternately what the conse‑ sense of superiority that Team
quences of pride and hubris can be India has brought them, who are
when pitted against a self‑respect‑ either completely oblivious to how
ing group of villagers, desperate in BCCI flexes its monetary muscles
their poverty, but determined not or, worse, ignore the power and
to cower down against the opposi‑ politics this body wie lds over
tion, regardless of how powerful world cricket.
they are, then the lessons of Not so the Indian cricketers
Lagaan are lost on those who run themselves. When you listen to a
Indian cricket. I am talking about Virat Kohli, or a Mahendra Singh
BCCI, The Board Of Control For Dhoni or Rohit Sharma, it is obvi‑
Cricket In India. In that name, it is ous they respect the game, and
the word “Control” that dominates harbor genuine appreciation and
their thinking: controlling the warmth for fellow international
world of cricket with their money cricketers. Mr. Kohli is exemplary
and new found power. in his press conferences: mature,
I am afraid that not only BCCI, it level‑headed, rational, and gener‑
favorites, especially as the last two
World Cups have been won by the
host team. Their team is No 1 at
present and the form especially of
their batters makes them into a
side that can chase a total.
Australia, with the return of two
of their best batsmen in Steven
Smith and David Warner and with
two series win against India and
Pakistan recently should make
them into a formidable side.
They are the present title hold‑
ers and look like a threat to make
the final play‑offs.
Pakistan, the winners of the
Champions Trophy in England in
India has a strong top order 2017, do not look well established
batters led by Virat Kohli, the No as a team at present. A 4‑0 drub‑
1 batsman in world cricket, so it bing by England forced the selec‑
will take some very good bowling
tors to go back to their stalwarts
for most teams to keep the trio
and therefore, they look like a side
from notching up a good start.
that may still need to get their
a good start. This will help to build combination right.
a foundation which then would be South Africa and New Zealand
an ideal platform for the hard‑hit‑ are two sides who in the past had
ting batsmen to follow. India's all the fire‑power to win the Cup
strength is their variety in their but somehow failed every time on
bowling, but it will be their field‑ the given day. Both of them pos‑
ing that will decide their fate. sess some outstanding cricketers,
Eng land look like the firm but they have had inconsistent
June 1-7, 2019 23
ous in the praise of his opponents,
especially in defeat. When India
wins handily against the lesser
opponents, and are asked saucy
questions about them by arrogant
Indian sports journalists, Kohli
usually softens the tone, and calls
for everyone “to respect the game.”
I would urge BCCI to remember
Kohliʼs caution: that whatever
financial strength it has amassed,
and consequently, political influ‑
ence over the game, it has done so
on the shoulders of its players. Yes,
management, training, the cricket
academies are there to ensure
Indiaʼs continuing success, but that
too is possible because of retired
players like Rahul Dravid, Sachin
Tendulkar, Sourav Ganguly and
Virendra Sehwag.
India might win the Cup this
time. They might not. But those of
us who have been following Indian
cricket for a long time, take pride
in it, love our players, should urge
Indiaʼs cricket authorit ies to
remember Lag aan, remember
where we, as a country, and as a
cricketing nation, have come from.
Do not do to others what the
British have done to us.
Shivaji Sengupta is an academic
who has retained a strong interest
in cricket even after living in
America for four decades.
performances during the year.
The West Indian side has some
powerful hitters, but watching
them recently play a tri‑series
with Bangladesh and Ireland, their
bowlers seem to lack consistency
in length and their fielding needs
a lot of improvement.
Sri Lanka is a side that has sev‑
eral internal issues and if they do
not do well in the first few match‑
es of the tournament they could
very easily be in the also‑ran cate‑
gory.
Bangladesh has the enthusiasm
of a young side on the rise, but for
them and for Afghanistan to beat
most of the sides rated well above
them will be a dif ficult feat to
accomplish. T he w ickets in
England from the matches that
have taken place recently appear
superb for batting.
Fielding will play a very impor‑
tant part and the one that takes
the best catches w ill w in the
matches.
We, as spectators, wish best of
luck to Team India.
Yajurvindra Singh is a former
Test cricketer.
 24 June 1-7, 2019
India sets Guinness World Records
of 'largest laundry lesson'
Mumbai: With 400 young Indian
men participating across the coun‑
try to learn laundry lessons to share
the responsibility of cleaning
clothes along with the female mem‑
bers of their homes, India achieved
the Guinness World Records certifi‑
cate for the largest laundry lesson
on Friday.
National award‑winning actor
Anil Kapoor joined the function
which was initiated by Ariel India
and hosted by Mandira Bedi. The
event was part of the #sharetheload
campaign.
Talking about the campaign,
Kapoor told the participants and
media: "I think the most important
thing is changing the mindset to
share household chores...with more
such campaigns we can see the
change. I strongly believe in equali‑
ty when I was a son, then the hus‑
band of Sunita my wife. My belief in
equality continued with all three of
my children ‑ Sonam, Rhea, and
Harsh."
"I am glad that when Sonam mar‑
ried Anand, I was so relieved that
Lara Dutta, Mahesh
Bhupathi share tips
for family vacay
Lara and Mahesh often opt for homestays for vacations
(image courtesy: eeyuva.com)
Mumbai: Actress Lara Dutta
Bhupathi and her husband and
Indian tennis legend Mahesh
Bhupathi love to travel with their
daughter Saira, and believe it is
important to spend quality time
with family.
To keep their child happy, Lara
and Mahesh, who often go for
options by Airbnb, prefer homes
with outdoor spaces and calming
interiors.
"When we are on vacation, we
want to make the most of our
family time. Saira loves frolicking
in the gardens and splashing
away in the pool," the couple said
in a statement.
8 It's a common viewpoint
that family travel involves lots of
luggage ‑‑ snacks for children,
400 sons shared solidarity by participating in the largest laundry
lesson hosted by Ariel for the Guinness world records
(Image courtesy: indianshowbiz.com)
Anand's mother Priya also taught
her son to share the responsibility
of household work along with
Sonam."
Then addressing the crowd, the
veteran actor said: "It is simple. If
you really want to be a good son
and a good husband, you should
games to keep them busy,
kitchen essentials, extra towels
and clothes to last the whole
vacation.
Embrace home‑stay concepts,
and ensure that you can travel
light and avoid the fuss of excess
luggage.
8 Amplify family time with
the pursuit of creativity. Keep
children busy with immersive
experiences, be it indoor or out‑
door, and encourage them to
learn something new, every time
you travel.
8 When traveling, there is no
act more fulfilling than indulging
in the local culture and traditions
of a new destination. Seek
insights from your host and dis‑
cover each place like a local.
LIFESTYLE TheSouthAsianTimes.info
New book aims to decode
the 'magic weight-loss pill'
New Delhi: It's easy to wait for a helped thousands to not only
magic weight‑loss pill as many lose weight but also prevent and
online advertisements tend to heal diseases.
promise customers than to alter The authors also suggest ways
your lifestyle to to achieve inex‑
incorporate effort, pensive, easy and
dedication and self‑ fulfilling lifestyle
discipline for shed‑ alternatives to the
ding those extra readers to achieve
kilos. An upcoming a healthy mind
book by two and body.
lifestyle coaches "The desire to
claims to decode live a long and
the magic weight‑ healthy living
loss pill. continues to
"The Magic evade many of us
Weight‑loss Pill", a due to simple
self‑help guide to real‑life restric‑
The book is penned by
weight loss and tions, resulting in
renowned holistic lifestyle
good health, is a number of frus‑
coach Luke Coutinho.
penned by trated people des‑
renowned holistic lifestyle coach perate to lose weight," Coutinho
learn to share the responsibility of
Luke Coutinho and popular said in a statement.
household work."
Indian actor and yoga instructor He said the book helps people
Earlier, the largest laundry lesson
Anushka Shetty. jump the hurdles of daily living
involved 318 people, achieved by
Published by Penguin Random using simple, inexpensive yet
Lion NANOX Team (Japan) at Lion
House India, the new self‑help powerful lifestyle changes.
Hirai Research Laboratory, in
title recommends over 60 The book is available for pre‑
Edogawa, Tokyo, Japan, on
lifestyle changes that have order online.
November 29, 2017.
Starbucks opens 'silent cafe'
in China's Guangzhou
Beijing: Leading coffee chain
Starbucks has opened a "silent
cafe" in the Chinese city of
An employee uses
sign language to
interact with cus‑
Guangzhou, where about half of
tomers at
the staff are hearing impaired, as
Starbucks China's
part of an initiative to support the
first store with
employment of disabled people. sign language
"This might be the quietest capability in
Starbucks of over 3,800 shops on Guangzhou's
the Chinese mainland," Xinhua Yuexiu district
news agency quoted Leo Tsoi, (Photo courtesy:
chief operating officer of China Daily)
Starbucks China, as saying.
Fourteen of the 30 staff at the the ordering, and customers can first coffee master with hearing
outlet, located in Yuexiu district also choose to write down their loss in China, is among three of
and officially opened over the specific needs. the hearing‑impaired managers at
weekend, are hearing impaired. "We cannot hear you but would the store.
The shop has a specially‑ like to share a tasty coffee with Having worked for Starbucks
designed ordering system that you," said Chen Siting, who works for seven years, Zhu hopes the
allows people to place orders at the store. "I believe more peo‑ store could be a platform for peo‑
without saying a word. ple like me could find a career ple with disabilities to show them‑
For example, all the drinks and they are passionate about in the selves and explore more possibili‑
food are numbered to facilitate future." Zhu Jieying, Starbucks' ties in their life.
TheSouthAsianTimes.info
How to look polished on any budget
Y
ou donʼt need to spend a fortune to
look like you own a fortune. Use
these shopping and wardrobe
maintenance tips to look amazing on a
limited budget.
Clothing Exchange
By hosting a clothing exchange, you
wonʼt need to spend a dime updating your
wardrobe. How does it work? Invite fash‑
ionable friends to bring their unwanted,
gently used items to your home (or anoth‑
er location with a lot of space). Once all
your guests arrive, youʼll have a huge pile
of clothing, shoes and accessories for
everyone to assess.
That awesome skirt that didnʼt quite flat‑
ter your best friend? It may look just right
on you.
Your handbag that no longer goes with
anything? It may be a friend of a friendʼs
newfound treasure.
At‑Home Care
Ever shied away from purchasing a par‑
How-to of healthy aging
I
n his distinguished career,
actor Ted Danson has played
many iconic roles, including a
cantankerous but caring doctor.
In real life, the 70‑year‑old says
good relationships with health
care providers are critical for
healthy aging.
“I like the personal relationship
with a fellow human being who
has compassion, and offers a solid
plan to fix whatever is going on
with both body and mind,” says
Danson. “If something is going on
with me, or Iʼm afraid something
Actor Ted Danson, age 70, says good
is, usually just knowing the facts
relationships with health care providers
not only relaxes me, but empowers
me, because the doctor will tell me
what to do to make it better.”
Danson is currently promoting whole
person health with Cigna, which serves
older adults in 16 states through its
Medicare Advantage (MA) plans. Heʼs
encouraging people to talk to their health
care providers about emotional and physi‑
cal health, including preventive care, as
well as common issues like stress, anxiety,
loneliness and sleeplessness, which can
impact overall health.
For healthy aging, Dr. Dirk Wales, chief
medical director with Cigna Medicare, rec‑
ommends the following preventive meas‑
ures:
8 Annual health risk assessment (HRA). Control and Prevention. The best defense,
Your physician or insurer will likely ask
you to take an annual HRA ‑‑ a quick
series of questions designed to help flag
issues early, so you can access the right
benefits and resources for you.
8 Colorectal cancer screenings. Too
few older adults get screened for colorec‑
tal cancer, the second‑leading cause of
cancer‑related deaths in the country.
When caught early, the disease is curable.
8 Breast cancer screenings. Breast can‑
cer, the most common cancer in American
SELF HELP June 1-7 2019 25
are used to steam clean clothes in the
dryer.
Go Thrifting
Youʼll never know what treasures youʼll
find while thrifting. Bear in mind that
many items ‑‑ including designer fashions
‑‑ may be on sale in nearly mint condition,
with just one spot or other imperfection.
Another common thrift store woe?
Finding the perfect item with a missing
buttons or tear along a seam. Learning a
few basic sewing skills is critical for any
serious thrifter.
Re‑Sell
Whether you visit a consignment shop
or use an online platform such as thredUP,
reselling items you no longer want or
need is a great way to infuse your clothing
Youʼll never know what treasures youʼll find while thrifting.
budget with some quick extra cash and is
ticular garment because the label said high‑quality garment itself. Treat items at totally on‑trend ‑‑ 56 million women
“Dry Clean Only”? Thereʼs an easy way to home using Dryel At‑Home Dry Cleaner, bought secondhand products in 2018, up
from 44 million in 2017, according to
avoid the steep cost and inconvenience of which comes with cloths similar to dryer
the dry cleaners without avoiding the sheets that are infused with cleaners and thredUPʼs Annual Resale Report.
are critical for healthy aging.
women after skin cancer, affects one in
eight women in their lifetimes. USPSTF
recommends women ages 50 to 74 years
old with average risk get a mammogram
every two years. Screenings can help
detect breast cancer early, when itʼs easier
to treat.
8 Eye exams, if you have diabetes.
People with diabetes have a higher risk of
blindness, but early detection and treat‑
ment can help protect against vision loss.
8 Annual flu shots. Between 70 and 90
percent of seasonal flu‑related deaths
occur in people 65 years old and older,
according to the Centers for Disease
an annual flu shot, is covered fully by
Medicare and MA plans when you visit a
participating provider.
8 Discuss mind and body. Depression
isnʼt a normal part of aging and itʼs treat‑
able. Be open with your health care
provider about everything youʼre feeling.
Every individual has unique health
needs. Ask your personal health advocate
for additional preventive measures tai‑
lored for you.
Statepoint
 26 June 1-7, 2019
Free courses for high school students keen on STEM
By Kristen Moon
F
or the ambitious student,
taking online classes is an
excellent way to expand
your knowledge, advance your
education, and help your applica‑
tion stand out from a crowded
field. Some high schools, faced
with budget cuts and overfilled
classrooms, have had to cut out
intensive courses. This leaves
them at a disadvantage, and lack‑
ing in a STEM (Science,
Technology, Engineering, and
Math) education. Other students
want to challenge themselves
further than what is of fered at
their school and must look for
alternatives.
With STEM jobs on the rise,
gaining exposure to this disci‑
pline is becoming increasingly
important. Regardless of whether
a student is looking to explore a
career path, learn more about
their intended major, or simply
to add a new skill to their
resume, there are options online
for high schoolers to master
STEM, without having to spend a
Planning your child’s musical career
By Willy Justin
E
very child should have the
opportunity to learn about
music and with a myriad of
instruments, musical genres,
schools, and performance groups
out there, the endeavor of plan‑
ning a musical path for your young
child can be a difficult and confus‑
ing undertaking. This article will
help clear up any questions about
this process and provide parents a
few simple steps to take to get
their child started on their musical
journey.
Unbiasedly assess
your childʼs abilities
When deciding which instrument
is best for your child, it is impor‑
tant to look at them unbiasedly.
This is a good time to take stock of
some key elements of your childʼs
physical abilities. Below are some
starting questions to consider
when beginning this assessment.
dime.
Many of the of fered courses
are through accredited universi‑
ties, created to allow for an even
platform for learning. Students
Physical Assessment
8 Size of their body and hands:
A child with smaller stature or
small hands will need an instru‑
ment suitable for their size.
8 Oral strength and health: If a
child has a malformation of the
mouth, tongue, lips, or cheeks this
may mean they will need to con‑
sider instruments that do not
require wind. For example, percus‑
sion or string instruments instead
of brass or woo dw ind.
Additionally, if your child is going
to be wearing braces, itʼs impor‑
tant to consider that playing brass
or woodwind may be difficult due
to the dif ficulty in maintaining
embouchure.
Personality Assessment
8 Temperament: How does
your child react to failure? Some
instruments are more dif ficult to
play than others, or simply sounds
unpleasing when practicing alone.
For children who need the encour‑
EDUCATION
can find college‑level classes that
can showcase an impressive
drive for learning to college
admissions counselors. Here are
some of the top free courses for
high school students interested
in learning STEM.
MIT
OpenCourseWare
The Massachusetts Institute of
Technolog y has one of the
largest collect ions of free
OpenCourseWare (OCW) on the
internet. A majority of their thou‑
sands of courses do cover STEM
topics. “Intro duct ion to
Computer Science and
Programming in Python” and
“Mathemat ics for Computer
Science” are two of their most
popular courses. No matter what
your age or occupation is, you
can find something of value with
the MIT OCW content.
There are no signups, enroll‑
ment, or deadlines you have to
hit; you can learn on your own
time.
Learn more: https://ocw.mit.edu
agement of frequent and easily
achieved improvement, there are
many instruments that can be
played for fun and enjoyment
while still learning the basics.
8 Responsibility: Some children
are protective of their possessions
and can be trusted with a more
temperamental material such as
wood or string. However, for those
TheSouthAsianTimes.info
Carnegie Mellon Open
Learning Initiative
Carneg ie Me llon Open
Learning Initiative offers a vari‑
ety of classes, many of which are
free. Their courses do not have
any start or end dates, and you
wonʼt have any tests or receive
any certifications at the end of it,
but you can gain invaluable skills
by the end of the course. A few of
their of fered courses include
“STEM Readiness” and
Chemistry.
Learn more: https://oli.cmu.edu/
Open Learning At
Harvard
Through Harvard Extension
School, motivated students have
the chance to learn from the
prestigious university. They offer
free courses on a variety of sub‑
jects, including STEM courses
such as Introduction to Game
Development or Data Science
Probability.
The courses are all self‑paced,
and often do not require a big
time commitment per week, mak‑
prone to dropping, losing, or toss‑
ing possessions, they may be bet‑
ter suited for an instrument that
provides a more durable materi‑
al̶or at least a starter version for
children.
8 Personality: Is your child
nervous and shy? Or do they love
to be in the lime lig ht? W hen
choosing an instrument, imagine
them performing with their instru‑
ment to an audience of people.
Perhaps your child would thrive
being a lead guitarist or feel more
comfortable in a group with others
in a string section. Thinking about
how an instrument is used in a
professional setting can shed some
light on which may be best for
your child.
Thinking Logistically
Aside from their traits, there are
also a number of environmental
factors that could influence your
childʼs musical path. A budget has
to be considered. Some instru‑
ments require costly maintenance
ing it easy for even a busy high
school student to complete dur‑
ing the school year or summer.
Learn more: https://www.exten‑
sion.harvard.edu/open‑learning‑
initiative
Appleʼs “Everyone
Can Code”
Apple created “Everyone Can
Code” because the company real‑
ized how essential coding is, and
it wanted to give everyone an
equal platform to learn. The tech
giant created the app‑develop‑
ment curriculum using the Swift
programming language that is
incredibly easy to use.
Through the app, users have to
solve puzzles to master code. As
you advance, the puzzles become
harder, allowing you to learn
complex code in a fun way. The
only caveat is students will have
to use an iPhone or iPad to
download Swift Playgrounds.
Learn more:
https://www.apple.com/every‑
one‑can‑code/
and carry a hefty price tag without
many options for cheaper versions
more suitable for beginners. In
order to provide a musical career
of any kind, one must be able to
financially provide the tools neces‑
sary for many years to come.
Choosing the right instrument can
make this easier on a familyʼs
resources.
Anyone endeavoring to begin a
new musical path will also need
the guidance of a musical instruc‑
tor. Particularly in the case of a
young child just learning about the
musical world around them,
instructors can make or break
enthusiasm on the subject. Finding
a reputable instructor is one of the
most important aspects of plan‑
ning your childʼs musical career.
Willy Justin is in charge of mar‑
keting ipassio, an online 1 on 1 live
hobby learning video platform,
where over 120 senior teachers
take Skype lessons on Indian classi‑
cal music, Sitar, Tabla, Guitar,
Piano, and many other instruments
TheSouthAsianTimes.info IMMIGRATION June 1-7, 2019 27

Do you have a Green Card but now find yourself in deportation proceedings?

Cancellation of Removal for Permanent Residents

By Dev Banad Viswanath, the decision of the Immigration LPR and family if the LPR is 4Additional violations of
Esq. & Michael Phulwani, Esq.
VISA Judge. The LPR must also not
have any criminal convictions
deported;
4 Evidence of good moral char‑
immigration or other laws;
4 Criminal record;

A
lawful permanent resi‑
dent (LPR) who is in
removal proceedings may
be eligible for cancellation of
removal, meaning the termina‑
tion of the removal process and
freedom to continue living in
America as a green card holder.
Cancellation of removal can be
sought when an LPR is in
removal or deportation proceed‑
ings before an Immigration
Judge and the individual is eligi‑
ble. To apply for cancellation of
removal the LPR must submit
Form EOIR‑42A with supporting
documents showing that they
meet all of the eligibility require‑
ments to the Immigration Judge.
Am I eligible for
cancelation of removal?
In order to be eligible for can‑
cellation of removal the LPR
must have had their green card
for a least five years and must
have lived in the U.S. for seven
years continuously after being
admitted in any status. The clock
TALK
of continuous presence stops
when either the government
serves the LPR a Notice to
Appear or the they commit cer‑
tain criminal offenses. A Notice
to Appear (NTA) is a document
given to an LPR to put them on
notice of deportation or removal
proceedings. The five‑year period
of permanent residency does not
include the time after a
deportable criminal offense
occurred, after the government
had produced a Notice to Appear,
or while the LPR is waiting on
which can be classified as aggra‑
vated felonies. If a LPR obtained
their green card through fraud
or misrepresentation they will
not be eligible for cancellation of
removal because they are not
considered to have been lawfully
admitted for permanent residen‑
cy, however, there may be other
waivers available for the fraud,
which is for another article dis‑
cussion. LPR Cancellation is a
discretionary form of relief,
which means ultimately the
judge will decide if a person is
deserving of the relief, and itʼs at
their discretion to grant the
same. Success in cancellation of
removal for LPRs requires that
the Immigration Judge finds that
the positive equities outweigh
any adverse factors. Below is a
list of some positive and negative
equities considered by an
Immigration Judge.
Examples of Positive Equities
4Family ties in the U.S.;
4Evidence of hardship to the
acter; 4 Evidence of bad character; or
4 Employment history and/or
business ties;
4 Property ownership;
4 Health Issues of the qualify‑
4 Evidence suggesting the LPR
applicant will continue to
commit “bad or violative acts”
Cancellation of removal can be
ing relative(s); granted only once so it is a valu‑
4 Community service; and able form of protection that
4 Service in the U.S. military. should not be taken lightly, the
LPR needs to present a strong
Examples of Negative Equalities convincing case in order to avoid
4Reason for removal; an Order of Removal.
Dev Banad Viswanath is the Principal
Attorney of The Banad Law Offices PC
in the United States,
and Banad Immigration in India for which
Attorney Michael Phulwani is also affiliated
as Of Counsel. With Offices in Manhattan,
Queens, Bangalore, and Mumbai, the firm is
able to assist clients with all facets of the
immigration process, including
Employment Visas, Consular Visa Assistance,
Student Visas, Removal & Deportation, US
Citizenship and Green Card Applications
based on Family or Employment. Dev B.
Viswanath can be reached at
Dev@Banadlaw.com and 718‑361‑5999.

GARDENING

Take the hassle out of daily watering

By Melinda Myers Invest in quick‑connectors that allow ous garden beds or containers on the taining hoses at every faucet while
you to make all these connections deck. retaining the convenience. Look for

P
roper watering is key to gar‑
dening success, but untan‑
gling and dragging heavy
hoses across the yard, smashing deli‑
cate flowers and young vegetable
plants along the way is a common
occurrence in many yards. If this
describes your escapades when
watering garden beds and planters,
it may be time to look for some time‑
saving solutions that reduce the has‑
sle of hand watering.
Protect edging plants, especially
those at the corner of the bed with
hose guides. You can make your own
from colorful wine bottles inverted
over a section of rebar anchored in
the ground. Or invest in some func‑
tional or decorative hose guides
available for sale.
Connecting and disconnecting the
Look for a hose trolley that is
sturdy and topple‑resistant yet
lightweight and maneuverable
to make watering easy.
(Photo : Gardenerʼs Supply Company)
hose to the faucet, inadequate length
of hoses, and nozzles can be a source
of aggravation. Washers disappear,
connections loosen, and leaks occur.
with a simple click.
Clear the hose clutter off patios,
decks and walks while keeping them
easily accessible for daily watering. A
hose reel allows you to easily wind
up the hose out of sight near the
faucet. These are often mounted on
the wall or are unsightly and bulky
devices with wheels that can still be
a bit unwieldy. Evaluate the design
and ease of use before investing.
An automatic reel that retracts the
hose quickly and easily or a light‑
weight portable model may be just
the solution. Irrigation equipment
like the G.F. Italia Portable Reel
Nozzle Hose available at
gardeners.com is lightweight
enough, allowing you to carry 50
feet of hose that unravels just the
length you need as you water vari‑
Coil hoses are designed to expand
when filled with water then retract
into a small size for clean, easy stor‑
age and portability. You eliminate
the need to unwind and rewind long
lengths of hoses every time you
water. Look for hoses made of long‑
lasting, kink‑free materials that have
superior coil memory for years of
easy watering.
Make moving long stretches of
hoses easier with featherweight and
lightweight slim products. A feather‑
weight hose can weigh as little as
two and a half pounds, making it eas‑
ier to move through the garden and
back onto the reel or storage con‑
tainer.
Combine the convenience of stor‑
age and lightweight portability.
Youʼll minimize the need for main‑
products that allow you to easily
move your hose where itʼs needed.
Expandable hoses allow you to easily
move your hose from faucet to
faucet for watering around the yard
or pack it in your RV when traveling.
Make proper watering a more con‑
venient part of garden and container
maintenance by investing in quality
hoses, connectors and storage
options. If itʼs easy, you are more
likely to water plants as needed and
then store the hoses conveniently
out of sight after each watering.
Melinda Myers has written more
than 20 gardening books, including
Small Space Gardening. She hosts
The Great Courses “How to Grow
Anything” DVD series and the
Melindaʼs Garden Moment TV &
radio segments.
 28 June 1-7, 2019 HUMOR TheSouthAsianTimes.info

Funny Side by Nury Vittachi

People love to be angry these days

T
his columnist once wrote to a friend
gently suggesting that he was not cut
out to be an anger management thera‑
pist. He replied in capital letters: “SO. WHAT.
ARE. YOU. SAYING?”
People love being angry these days, and the
problem is getting worse. When I look at
Facebook, I feel I need to stand well back.
“The aviation industry suf fers the most,”
said a reader who works in that sector. She
showed me a news report expressing outrage
about an airline which threw a passenger off
the flight “because she was breastfeeding”.
Another was about an airline which ejected a
man “for having a tattoo”. A third report was
about a flight in which staff stopped the plane
to escort a “feminist activist” off.
“But not one of them happened as report‑
ed,” said the woman, who did not want her
name printed. “In each case, the passenger
was actually thrown off for breaching indus‑
try‑wide safety rules. But journalists prefer to
say it was because the person was breastfeed‑
ing or whatever because anger gets all the
clicks.”
A typical case was reported last December.
Just as a Delta Airlines plane was about to
take of f from Atlanta, a man rose from his
seat and went to the toilet. The crew scolded
him and booted him of f the flight ̶ so he
called reporters and told them: “Itʼs because
Iʼm black.”
The good news is that such cases are mostly
limited to Western media. “On the East side of
the planet, there is no assumption that
authority figures are automatically wrong,”
she said.
Interesting. I mean, thereʼs a lot of bad
things you can say about Asian journalists,
such as the fact that we are often corrupt,
lazy, bribe‑taking, careless, woefully inaccu‑
rate, gullible, and seem incapable of critical
thinking, let alone good writing, and I forgot
where I was going with this sentence so I
think Iʼll just end it here.
These days, the Asian media does the anger
thing in some countries, while in others, news
Laughter is the Best Medicine
items are bland and emotionless. In some
Indo‑China nations, the first item on the TV
news is always the same: “Premier cuts rib‑
bon.” Sometimes the entire news bulletin is
the premier cutting various ribbons. Aliens
intercepting those transmissions must think
this is a planet in which fame and fortune go
to men who can use scissors.
But elsewhere, the modern love of anger
can have bad results. A few days ago, the New
York Times told the shocking story of a bird
scientist who did his job: He caught and dis‑
sected a bird as a specimen for his museumʼs
million‑piece research collection. An angry
web‑surfer published his name on the
Internet as a “bird murderer”. The scientist
got so many angry death threats that he need‑
ed police protection.
The Internet, and particularly Facebook and
Twitter, are magnets for the Super Angry. One
of my social media friends thunders: “I donʼt
need anger management. Everyone else needs
stupidity management.” To him, life seems
horribly unfair. “When Thor throws his ham‑
mer heʼs a hero. When I throw a hammer I
need therapy,” he grumbles. Stand well back.
Literally.

BEST
RATE
FOR
INDIA
AND
PAKISTAN
New York Head Quarter
422‑S Broadway
HICKSVILLE
NY 11801
By Mahendra Shah
516‑827‑1010
Mahendra Shah is an architect by education, entrepreneur by
profession, artist and humorist, cartoonist and writer by hobby. He has
been recording the plight of the immigrant Indians for the past many years
in his cartoons. Hailing from Gujarat, he lives in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
TheSouthAsianTimes.info ASTROLOGY June 1-7, 2019 29

Chandigarh, India: +91-172- 256 2832, 257 2874

By Dr Prem Kumar Sharma Delhi, India: +91-11- 2644 9898, 2648 9899
psharma@premastrologer.com; w.premastrologer.com

JUNE 1‑7, 2019

Aries: Spouse or a family member will
help you plan something that needs to
be done urgently on the domestic
front.
Monetary incentive is likely for some in
recognition for a job well done. Health tips
acted upon will improve health. Your large
heartedness can win the admiration of sub‑
ordinates. Financial front will be in the pink
of health.
Taurus: A change made at workplace
will prove to be a wise decision.
Rough seas are likely to be encoun‑
tered on the romantic front. Eating out may
be fun for you, but not for your health!
Some students will be able to restore their
self‑esteem by providing excellent results.
Your ef fective thinking in financial front
will help you in managing the financial cri‑
sis in a better way.
Gemini: Those not satisfied by their
looks can go in for an image
makeover. Creative work is likely to
ignite your rich imagination. Young lovers
are likely to spend the time together.
Pulling out all the stops in achieving what
you want at work or on the academic front
will find you in a position of strength soon.
Despite hectic schedule you will manage to
find time for family.
Cancer: Placing your personal work
before official tasks may not be
appreciated by co‑workers.
Favourable results can be expected in aca‑
demics. Someone is desperate for your
attention; take a step forward only if you
are serious. People trying for jobs abroad
may face some hurdles. Maintaining regu‑
lar walks and exercises will help keep
you fit.
Leo: A professional breakthrough is
likely to catapult you to greater
heights. You will motivate someone
to join you for giving shape to your idea.
Homemakers will be able to save consider‑
ably in the home front with excellent plan‑
ning of household activities with available
resources. You will be able to make your
lover happy and keep the warmth of love
between you keep going.
Virgo: Professionally you will experi‑
ence a goo d wee k ahead.
Businessman will get an opportunity
to invest in a profitable project. Be careful
with your diet to prevent yourself from
stomach ailments. People on the lookout for
matrimonial alliance will succeed in getting
suitable match. If you plan your finance
well then you can afford a luxurious item
which is there in your mind.
Libra: There is a certain positive
indication on the professional front
as your hard work brings in positive
results. Household issues will be expertly
handled as you take full responsibility for
them. You will have to get into the habit of
exercise and routine workouts to remain in
shape. Do not forget the promises made to
your lover if you want to have a peaceful,
trouble less love life.
Scorpio: The coming week may find
you touching the heights on the aca‑
demic front. You will have to under‑
take a patch up work at professional front
and this would require you to spare some
time. Financial front is likely to stabilise
once you review your investment options.
Domestic life will have its ups and downs,
but you will manage to navigate the rough
waters well.
Sagittarius: Your focus may need to
be sharp to excel on the academic
front. Opportunity knocks for those
trying to change their line of work. You are
going to bid farewell to a long standing
heath issue. Your humble nature and pleas‑
ing attitude will impress your lover. You
will have to plan your finances well this
week, else you may face serious financial
crisis.
Capricorn: You will be able to clear
the air regarding a misunderstand‑
ing on the work front. Signing a
property deal is indicated for some.
Recovery for the ailing may take time, but
w ill not cause any problems. People
involved in constant travelling may develop
fatigue. You may find it difficult to convince
your partner on some issues and this may
make you lose your patience.
Aquarius: The coming week brings
in fresh energies and excellent time.
The mental tensions troubling you
will vanish. Students involved in preparation
for competitive exams will be able to main‑
tain better focus and concentration. You may
get af fected with some infection until you
take proper care of your health. You may
involve with a person of opposite gender
which may ultimately blossom into love.
Pisces: A visit to your distant rela‑
tives is on cards for some. You will
make an excellent tactical move and
this will place you in a comfortable position
in your professional front. You may experi‑
ence some hurdles in payment of loan, how‑
ever you may manage to find some
resources. People who have recently had
their marriage need to be careful to under‑
stand one another.

June 1, 2019 Property related matter, which has

Ruled by number 1 and the Sun,
you are highly imaginative, practi‑
cal, emotional, honest, simple and
generous person. You have a very
sharp mind, an exceptionally good
grasping power and you believe
that itʼs never too late to learn, but
you need to check your tendency
to behave lazy, timid and carefree
at times. This year your energy
will be high and you will feel
strong enough to face any chal‑
lenge. Middle of the year seems
exceptionally good for those who
are looking for a change in their
career, as they will receive an
excellent job of fer. Frequent and
fruitful journeys will be undertak‑
en. You will also improve your
relationship with important people
during this period. Children will
win laurels at school and over‑
achieve the expectations of their
parents.
Family members will gather
around you providing you with
love and affection. The months of
July, November and February will
be highly eventful.
June 2, 2019
Governed by number 2 and the
Moon, you are energetic, dignified,
ambitious, and an intelligent per‑
son. You are a person who enjoys
a small but trustworthy group of
friends. You are not secretive
about anything and you like to
share with others, but your need to
check your tendency to behave
hypocrite, over ambitious and dic‑
tatorial at times. This year new
plans and projects will be alluring
but instant gains might not be pos‑
ANNUAL PREDICTIONS: FOR THOSE BORN IN THIS WEEK
sible. Great period for consultants
and brokers. Investment is defi‑
nitely recommended but sudden
losses due to thoughtless decisions
cannot be ruled out. New romance
for some as others get involved in
a matrimonial wedlock. Distant pil‑
grimage is certain later in the year.
Donʼt be too friendly with
strangers and avoid disclosing
your plans, as chances of deceit
are very strong. Be extra careful
while lending money and take
extra care of your jewelry, pre‑
cious gifts and items. The months
of April, August, December and
February will be important.
June 3, 2019
Ruled by number 3 and the plan‑
et Jupiter. You are bold, energetic,
ambitious, dignified, and systemat‑
ic person. You are always attracted
to good music and nature and you
also like to enjoy your privacy and
independence. People admire you
because of your commitment
towards your work, but you need
to control your tendency to behave
reckless and stubborn at times.
Certain events not in your con‑
trol would be responsible for
changes in your profession/
career. It would not be an easy
period as many things would not
be in your favour, but support and
help from friends and family mem‑
bers would induce new energy
into you and make things much
comfortable than they actually
might be. Gains from property
transaction, investments and gifts
cannot be ruled out. If you are
unattached then changes to meet
the love of your life would be
strong. Spiritual gains later in the
year brings solace and comfort.
T he months of April, August,
November and February will
remain significant.
June 4, 2019
Influenced by number 4 and the
planet Uranus. You are smart,
active, practical, enthusiastic,
courageous and highly religious
person. You take a very realistic
view of things in your daily life
and tackle them with immense
responsibility, but you need to
check your tendency to behave
restless, vindictive and spendthrift
at times. This year you would be
the leader in your group and satis‑
factorily complete new and chal‑
lenging projects. You are setting
into a remarkable period, which
would bring excellent results to
you career. You would spend more
on comforts and luxuries, but be
very confused regarding invest‑
ments. You would be in the lime‑
light at social gathering. You
would make new friends and
important contacts. Health seems
fine but even then, it is recom‑
mended that you take preventive
medication. The months of May,
September and December will
prove to be highly important.
June 5, 2019
Governed by number 5 and the
planet Mercury. You are intelli‑
gent, emotional, sharp, sensible,
dignified, original and dashing per‑
son. You have magnetic personali‑
ty, which attracts many people
towards you. You are warm and
friendly person, but you need to
check your tendency to behave
restless, impatient and possessive
at times. A period of immense
gains and rewards. Your personali‑
ty and confidence will improve and
it will bring major gains in your
profession as well. Your employer
will appreciate your knowledge
and your skills. You will also make
additional financial gains through
sale of property, accrual of rent,
dividends or interests. This is also
a good period to invest in expen‑
sive art and ornaments. Good news
from distant re latives can be
expected later in the year.
Pilgrimage or a long journey will
be high on your cards. The months
of April, July, September and
November will prove important.
June 6, 2019
Ruled by number 6 and the plan‑
et Venus. You are active, imagina‑
tive, honest, charming, energetic,
and very fond of worldly pleas‑
ures. You have an in‑build talent to
heal people who are depressed
and feeling emotionally down, but
you need to control your tendency
to behave moody, timid and spend‑
thrift at times. This year you will
make major gains at work. You will
establish better rapport with col‑
leagues and clients but your sen‑
iors will be difficult to handle.
been disturbing your mind would
settle to your satisfaction. Your
love life will strengthen as your
mate shows more confidence in
you than ever before. You will
receive gifts and presents and
romance will flourish, but some
people will be jealous around you.
Elders and children in the family
will demand lot of your attention.
The months of March, June and
December will be significant.
June 7, 2019
Dominated by number 7 and the
planet Neptune, you are practical,
trustworthy, imaginative, sensitive
and a simple person. You donʼt
believe in love at first sight and
you take your time in developing
trust but once you like somebody
it lasts forever. You are highly sys‑
tematic and methodical person,
but you need to control your ten‑
dency to behave arrogant and
dominating at times. This year
you will travel more frequently for
business and this could put some
pressure on your personal life.
Projects that have been slow till
now will gain momentum.
Romance will flourish, but do not
push your mate for some changes
in his/her behaviour or be pre‑
pared for arguments and con‑
frontations.
Although your competitive
nature will keep you ahead of oth‑
ers, but financial gains in the first
half of the year will be much less
than your expectation. Health
needs more care. The months of
May, August and January will
prove to be important.
 30 June 1-7, 2019 SPIRITUAL AWARENESS TheSouthAsianTimes.info

Mysticism, the science that

injects life with peace and joy
that which is physical and mental,
it seems mysterious. That is why Through meditation
this approach came to be known
as mysticism.
on the inner Light
Mysticism, however, is a science and Sound we can
By Sant Rajinder Singh that injects life with understand‑ achieve the peace,
Ji Maharaj ing, joy, peace, and love. It is a
practical approach to living that harmony, love, and

M
ysticism, rightly under‑
stood, is the most univer‑
sal and fundamental
approach to achieving an integrat‑
ed and fulfilling life. In a world
that has made such remarkable
scientific and material progress,
the challenge before us, individu‑
ally and collectively, is to make
similarly spectacular progress in
the spiritual sphere. Each of us is
allotted a limited amount of time
on earth. During this time we have
a unique opportunity to investi‑
gate the purpose for which we
were born and try to understand
the meaning of life itself.
The desire to know and under‑
stand things seems to be innate in
human beings. Scientists are
engaged in this pursuit, but the
tools they use are limited to those
that are physical and intellectual.
Over the years, saints and mystics
have unraveled the mysteries of
life and death and have discov‑
ered that complete understanding
could only be gained at the spiri‑
tual level. Because the spiritual
pursuit deals with realms of expe‑
rience that ultimately transcend
enriches our inner life and enrich‑
es our relationships with others.
The basic premise of mysticism is
that each of us, in reality, is a soul
inhabiting a physical body for a
rather short period of time.
It may be twenty, forty, sixty,
eighty, or even a hundred years,
but in the not too distant future,
each of us will die and leave this
world.
Where did our soul come from
before we entered this world?
Where will it go after we leave
here? What is the purpose of this
world, and of life itself? These
questions are fundamental to
understanding our human exis‑
tence.
The mystics are those enlight‑
ened individuals who have
searched and found the answers
to these questions. They tell us
that the purpose of our life is to
reunite our soul with its Creator,
and they offer to teach us a
method by which we can do so.
Throughout the ages many meth‑
ods have been taught to achieve
this union, but in our contempo‑
rary world, we need an approach
that takes into account the reali‑
ties of modern life. Such an
approach to mysticism offers
unlimited opportunities for
improving our lives and improv‑
ing the lives of people throughout
the globe.
The beginning of our soulʼs jour‑
ney is the contact with the Light
and Sound of God. The Light and
Sound current flows out from God,
but it also flows back to God. We
can catch this current at the point
of the third or single eye. That is
the connecting point between our
soul in the body and the Light and
Sound current emanating from
the Creator. If we can concentrate
our attention at that point, we can
soar on it back through the higher
regions of existence. The current
will ultimately lead us to our pri‑
mary Source, back to the Lord.
The method is simple. As we
gaze within, we transcend aware‑
ness of body‑consciousness into
realms of Light and Sound within.
As we continue this process we
will prove to ourselves that there
is Light and Sound beyond, that
we can exist separately from the
physical body, and that there are
bliss that we so
desperately seek,
and we can be a
part of an
ever‑increasing
group of people
who are spreading
peace and human
unity throughout
the world.
higher realms of divine conscious‑
ness. The test is to prove it to our‑
selves. Those who spend time
daily in this process have had suc‑
cess in proving the hypothesis
that there is an existence beyond
this world.
Through meditation on the
inner Light and Sound we can
achieve the peace, harmony, love,
and bliss that we so desperately
seek, and we can be a part of an
ever‑increasing group of people
who are spreading peace and
human unity throughout the
world.

By Sant Rajinder Singh Ji

Maharaj
O
nce the great writer Mark Twain
was having a discussion with a
businessman who was known for
being aggressive and ruthless in his deal‑
ings with others.
The businessman said to the writer,
"Before I die I would like to make a pil‑
grimage to the Holy Land and climb to the
top of Mount Sinai to read the Ten
Commandments aloud at the top."
Mark Twain quickly replied, "I have a
better idea. Rather than go to Mount Sinai
where Moses was g iven the Ten
Commandments, why donʼt you just stay
home here in Boston and practice the Ten
Commandments in your life!"
This humorous comment carries a sig‑
nificant meaning. Many of us read the
Commandments or advice given by the
great saints in the scriptures. Many of us
THEORY VS. PRACTICE
progress, that is not enough; we have to
actually practice it.
The true heart of the spiritual teachings
is in the practice. It is not enough to know
what others have said about it. It is essen‑
tial that we have our own firsthand experi‑
ence of spirituality. That can be accom‑
plished when we sit in meditation.
Progress is a matter of accuracy. We can
become accurate only by practice. Practice
makes perfect. If we expect to sit in medi‑
tation once or twice in our life and accom‑
plish spiritual progress, we are being
unrealistic. We need to practice daily.
It is said that if we take one step toward
God, God will take a hundred steps toward
THE TRUE HEART OF THE SPIRITUAL us. The time we spend in meditation will
be richly rewarded.
TEACHINGS IS IN THE PRACTICE. IT IS NOT
Instead of mere ly reading the Ten

ENOUGH TO KNOW WHAT OTHERS HAVE

are happy even to preach what our holy
books say. But how many of us live up to
the teachings we follow?
There is a big difference between know‑
ing the theory and practicing it. It is not
enough to read the books or scriptures
and know the theory. We need to live up
to them in our own lives. If we learn a
method of meditation and instructions for
Commandments, live them. If we do our
meditations and lead ethical lives, observ‑
SAID ABOUT IT. IT IS ESSENTIAL THAT WE ing the virtues of nonviolence, truthful‑
ness, purity, humility, selfless service, and
HAVE OUR OWN FIRSTHAND EXPERIENCE love for all, we will be blessed with inner
vision. We will have the proof for our‑
OF SPIRITUALITY. THAT CAN BE ACCOM‑
selves of the existence of our soul and
PLISHED WHEN WE SIT IN MEDITATION. God.
(For more visit www.sos.org)
TheSouthAsianTimes.info June 1-7, 2019
TheSouthAsianTimes.info June 1-7, 2019